UFC Vegas 44 kicked off the month of December for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, and did so in style.
After a couple of months of lackluster Fight Night cards that lacked name value (though at least some punched above their weight), the first event of December brought with it some notable names. Former featherweight champ and King of Rio Jose Aldo topped the card, taking on fellow bantamweight contender Rob Font.
Aldo had reinvented himself as a bantamweight contender, but it was Font who had really been on a tear coming into the fight. Once an afterthought at 145lbs, Font had knocked off a murderer’s row of opponents including Marlon Moraes and Cody Garbrandt — and was looking to defeat his second straight former champ on Saturday.
Also on the card, Clay Guida, going up against Leonardo Santos in what turned out to be a contender for Comeback of the Year. Bryan Barberena got short-notice replacement Darian Weeks, after Matt “The Immortal” Brown was forced off the card due to COVID-19.
And in the co-main event, an absolute banger, at least on paper, in the form of a lightweight showdown between friends and former training partners Brad Riddell and Rafael Fiziev.
Following Saturday’s card, tune in for the UFC Vegas 44 post-fight press conference. The live stream is available above.
