ММА. UFC on ESPN 31
Rob Font (USA) vs José Aldo (Brazil)
UFC Apex (Las Vegas)
UFC on ESPN 31 tournament will take place early on December 5, featuring the main fight of the evening where Rob Font will face José Aldo.
It is a bantamweight fight, and the fighters are #4 and #5 in the rankings respectively.
Claim Your Welcome Bonus!Rob Font: on a good streak
Rob Font is on a streak of four straight wins, and his last fight tha took place on May 22 saw him win by decision over Cody Garbrandt.
The former champion was then simply demolished by Font in both the standup and the ground. But he let those knockdowns go and let him control himself for a while. On the whole, of course, grappling is not Rob's greatest weapon. His element is boxing, he's good here, and cardio – the fighter never slumps functionally.
«It’s crazy because he’s fought everybody you could think of, from Max Holloway to Volkanovski to Faber. He’s seen it, done it, so there’s nothing that I can throw at him that he hasn’t seen, except for how consistent I am with my jab and how much I believe in it. I do believe that I’m really consistent and accurate with it, and I don’t think he’s ever fought anyone like that.»
Rob Font
José Aldo: former champ seems relatively fine
No matter what they say about Aldo, he's still an elite fighter with high ambitions. Punched or unpunched, you can argue, but he hasn't lost a single fight without a decent resistance, and he's won his last two.
In his most recent fight, he simply handled Pedro Muñoz in class.
«I do get acknowledged by younger fighter. It’s just interesting because I noticed that, and it makes me feel like a grandpa sometimes because everybody says, ‘Oh, I followed you. I’ve seen your fights. I follow your style'. But it makes me really happy, too, because at the end of the day, it’s the recognition of my work. But I'm ready to prove that I can become a champion despite my age. I'm not going to stop until I reach my goal. As for Rob Font, I always respect my opponents. I know his qualities and I know where he’s coming from. Based on that, that’s when I focus and prepare for my fights.»
José Aldo
Tale of the tape
It’s always interesting to look at the objective measurements before betting on a fighter.
| Measurement | Font | Aldo |
| Age | 34 | 35 |
| Height (cm) | 173 | 170 |
| Record | 19-4 | 30-7 |
| Early wins | 12 | 18 |
| Last fight | May 22, 2021 | Aug 7, 2021 |
| Winning streak | 4 | 2 |
Expert Betting Tips
The analysts at bet365 believe that José Aldo is the underdog (the odds on his victory are 2.25), and there is a lot to think about. The fight is likely to be predominantly a standup, and here the former champion is not at all inferior to Rob Font. Plus, he has incredible experience, so, if needed, he is always able to pause and even move his opponent to the ground, where he will also have the advantage.
Jose's main trump card is his brutal low-kicks, which even he used to take out Petr Yan. But Rob Font is no Peter Yan, he can't defend against them and he can't take them for a long time. He's going to have a hard time in the later rounds on one leg.
It's just a question of how long he'll last, but again, taking into account his experience and past mistakes, it seems he's worked on that aspect as well. He understands that if he loses now, he'll forget about his next run to the title. And bet365 also thinks that the fight will last until the end, offering the odds of 1.66 for a full fight. Betway gives 1.65 for the same outcome, while 1xbet suggests 1.72.