Rob Font Archives - Cageside Press Cageside Press - Everything MMA! Wed, 11 Mar 2026 04:56:27 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.5 https://cagesidepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/cropped-cagesidepress512-3-32x32.png Rob Font Archives - Cageside Press 32 32 Raul Rosas Jr On Dominant Win Over Rob Font: “I Passed This Test with Flying Colors” https://cagesidepress.com/2026/03/11/raul-rosas-jr-on-dominant-win-over-rob-font-i-passed-this-test-with-flying-colors/ Wed, 11 Mar 2026 04:56:27 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=221404 Raul Rosas Jr. delivered one of the most dominant performances of his young career. Using relentless grappling and a relentless pace, the 21-year-old overwhelmed veteran Rob Font, controlling the action from start to finish and securing a convincing victory that further cemented his place as one of the division’s most intriguing young contenders. “I’ve been […]

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]]> Raul Rosas Jr. delivered one of the most dominant performances of his young career. Using relentless grappling and a relentless pace, the 21-year-old overwhelmed veteran Rob Font, controlling the action from start to finish and securing a convincing victory that further cemented his place as one of the division’s most intriguing young contenders.

“I’ve been working so hard for this moment. I wish I could have got the finish, but either way, I feel like the performance was good and I passed this test with flying colors,” Rosas Jr told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

“It means a lot being able to connect with the fans and they’re always showing love. I appreciate everybody’s supporting me along the way.”

Rosas Jr (12-1) said he expected a cautious approach from the veteran once the fight hit the mat, especially given how dangerous the submission exchanges became.

While he was able to maintain control throughout the grappling sequences, he admitted Font’s defensive awareness made it difficult to fully lock in a finish.

“I knew he was going to play it safe, but he played it more safe than I thought. Every time I felt like the submission was there, he would reset, and he just wouldn’t give me anything. Props to him,” he said.

Rosas Jr. said the victory represented a significant milestone in his development, especially against a veteran who has consistently faced the top names in the bantamweight division.

For the rising prospect, the win served as validation that he’s ready to begin testing himself against the division’s elite.

“Rob Font’s been in there with the best and I passed this test with flying colors,” he said.

“So I’m ready to compete against the best in the world. If I’m not ready, I’ll figure out how to be ready, I got the best team now. I’m with the (MMA) Lab. I got good people around me that are going to help me get ready for any challenge that’s ahead of me.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Raul Rosas Jr above.

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]]> What’s Next: UFC 326 Losers https://cagesidepress.com/2026/03/09/whats-next-ufc-326-losers/ Tue, 10 Mar 2026 02:32:59 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=221377 UFC 326’s main event on Saturday featured the fifth fight for the BMF belt in the promotion’s history. The special belt has now been around for seven years. In the co-main event, there was a high stakes, ranked middleweight showdown between Caio Borralho and Reinier de Ridder. The five-fight main card featured two spectacular bonus-earning […]

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]]> UFC 326’s main event on Saturday featured the fifth fight for the BMF belt in the promotion’s history. The special belt has now been around for seven years. In the co-main event, there was a high stakes, ranked middleweight showdown between Caio Borralho and Reinier de Ridder. The five-fight main card featured two spectacular bonus-earning finishes. The main card also featured two exciting rematches. All of the losers this week are ranked, outside of longtime UFC veteran Michael Johnson.

Max Holloway

(#3) Charles Oliveira out grappled and bested (#4) Max Holloway in the pair’s rematch over a decade in the making, in order to capture the BMF belt. Holloway is now 2-2 since moving up to the lightweight division in 2024. Holloway has only fought elite competition in the division including Justin Gaethje, Illia Topuria and Dustin Poirier.

Max should take on either (#8) Dan Hooker or (#5) Benoit Saint Denis next. Both fights would be absolute bangers as both gentlemen would be willing to stand and trade with Holloway. Easy main event booking for either fighter. Hooker is coming off a pair of stoppage losses to Arman Tsarukyan and Benoit Saint-Denis. Dan was last in the octagon on January 31 so the timing would also matchup. Hooker is 2-2 in his last four similar to Max.

BSD on the other hand has won four fights in a row and has stopped all four of those guys (Kyle Prepolec, Mauricio Ruffy, Beneil Dariush and Dan Hooker). Holloway would be an excellent elite level litmus test for BSD. and Benoit would be a welcome and fun scrap to get Holloway back on the right track (and close in rankings).

Holloway’s next fight: Benoit Saint Denis or Dan Hooker

Reinier de Ridder

(#7) Caio Borralho landed the more damaging shots to win a unanimous decision over (#8) Reinier de Ridder on Saturday in the co main event of UFC 326. It was a heavy-lifting matchup for the division a with the Fight Nerd product coming out on top. RDR has now lost two fights in a row and is 4-2 with the promotion since joining in late 2024.

Walking back a previous loser’s article pick for this one. RDR has to take on (#6) Anthony Herandez next. Fluffy just got stopped by Sean Strickland in the third round of their bout on February 21. The timing would work. Not to mention, RDR was scheduled to take on Hernandez back in October before Fluffy got injured and was forced to withdraw from the bout. Both guys are now coming off of losses and after the performance Saturday, this fight makes more sense than ever. Could be a main event or co main event of a fight night card or high up on the main card of a PPV card. Winner is knocking on the door of a title eliminator bout with a flashy finish.

de Ridder’s next fight: Anthony Hernandez

Rob Font

Raul Rosas Jr. smothered and shut out #13-ranked Rob Font on Saturday as Font just was not able to get his boxing offense going before repeatedly ending up on the canvas in grappling exchanges. This was a changing of the guard fight, with the youngster passing with flying colors. 38-year-old Font now falls to 12-9 under the promotional banner and he has now lost two in a row.

The perfect next fight for Font would be to give him the winner of Adrian Yanez vs Ricky Simon. That fight goes down on March 28 so the timing would match up. Ricky is 10-6 with the UFC and has gone 2-2 in his last four bouts. Yanez is 6-3 with the promotion and has dropped three of his last four. The winner of this fight might draw a ranked matchup if it’s a thrilling finish, but if not, they may need another fight before getting a ranked matchup. Font will likely slide just outside of the rankings and would offer a perfect opportunity. Of course, either fighter that Font draws offer him another opportunity to prove he isn’t over the hill and still belongs within the ranked bantamweight fighters. This fight could land on the main card of a fight night card.

Font’s next fight: Ricky Simon vs Adrian Yanez winner

Michael Johnson

Drew Dober smoked Michael Johnson with a beautiful left hand in a fight where ‘The Menace’ was looking really quick and sharp to start out. After finding some stability in the form of a 3-fight win streak (Darrius Flowers, Ottoman Azaitar and Daniel Zellhuber) a loss like this was the absolute last thing that the 39-year-old needed. Johnson now sits with the peculiar record and stint of 16-16 over 16 years with the promotion.

Good next matchup for ‘Mr. I’ve Fought Everyone on the Roster’ would be against the loser of Terrance McKinney vs Kyle Nelson. That fight is scheduled for March 28 so the timing could be okay depending on Johnson’s recoup time. Both guys are extremely entertaining fighters. McKinney is 7-5 with the UFC and has gone 2-2 in his last four. He has yet to hear the final bell in one of his UFC fights. Kyle Nelson is 5-5-1 and has gone 3-1 in his last four. Great matchup whichever way this goes, but the ideal matchup here would absolutely be Johnson vs McKinney. That bout has a real chance for fireworks. This is for relevancy and keeping your head above the shark infested waters of the UFC’s lightweight division. This fight could be on the main card of a weaker fight night card or potentially a feature prelim- very likely to be a banger.

Johnson’s next fight: Terrance McKinney vs Kyle Nelson loser

Brunno Ferreira

(#13) Gregory Rodrigues flatlined (#15) Brunno Ferreira with one of the first punches he threw in the pair’s rematch on the main card of UFC 326 Saturday. The finish earned Robocop a bonus while Ferreira had a 3-fight win streak snapped and all his momentum halted. The 2022 Contender Series product is now 6-3 with the UFC.

Brunno should fight Roman Kopylov or Marco Tulio next. The pair are actually scheduled to fight on May 9. Timing may not appear like it’d match up, but that was a nasty knockout that Ferreira suffered on Saturday, so he could very well be on the shelf for the foreseeable future. Kopylov would be the matchup that we’re leaning towards here. Roman is 6-5 with the UFC and is riding a two-fight losing skid. The loss was against Paulo Costa and Gregory Rodrigues (Costa was originally slated to fight Ferreira on Saturday before withdrawing). Perfect matchup.

Marco Tulio could be a good fight too, he 2-1 with the UFC and his loss is to Christian Leroy Duncan. This matchup could easily be on the main card of a fight night card or even a feature prelim of a PPV card. Brunno is going to slide out of the rankings so the winner of that scrap would likely draw a ranked opponent.

Ferreira’s next fight: Roman Kopylov or Marco Tulio 

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]]> Raul Rosas Jr. Dominates Rob Font With 16 Takedowns at UFC 326 https://cagesidepress.com/2026/03/07/raul-rosas-jr-dominates-rob-font-with-16-takedowns-at-ufc-326/ Sun, 08 Mar 2026 04:40:42 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=221215 After being forced out of last year’s Noche UFC, Raul Rosas Jr. finally got to throw down with Rob Font at UFC 326, in a veteran versus prospect match-up. Finally 21, Rosas Jr. had made his debut in the UFC at 18 after earning a UFC contract on the Contender Series as a 17-year old, […]

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]]> After being forced out of last year’s Noche UFC, Raul Rosas Jr. finally got to throw down with Rob Font at UFC 326, in a veteran versus prospect match-up.

Finally 21, Rosas Jr. had made his debut in the UFC at 18 after earning a UFC contract on the Contender Series as a 17-year old, the youngest fighter to ever do so. So far, he’d won five of six assignments in the company, but Font represented another step up in competition.

The two met in the middle of the octagon where we found Rob Font with a very different stance then we’ve seen in him before, keeping it low, clearly looking to avoid the take down. You saw some exchanges in the early moments of the first round, although it wasn’t long until Rosas Jr. secured the single leg and sat Font down halfway through the first round.

Font looked to make his way back to his feet, but was unable to break the hands of Rosas Jr. who kept a tight body lock continuing a mat return every time Font managed to get back to his feet. Rosas Jr. ended the first with plenty of control time, but no damage landed

Starting off the next five minutes in a very similar fashion, Rosas Jr. found the take down in the opening minute of the second round. Font found a quick reversal but Rosas Jr. did what he does and was able to scramble out of the bad position landing back on top, inside of Font’s guard.

Immediately Font went to the high guard, really trying to break and control the posture of Rosas Jr. Not finding much success, Rosas Jr. continued to beat Font in the scrambling game. Font attempted a kimura in the final minute of the round but not much came of it. You could see that Font came prepared for the grappling exchanges as far as his conditioning looked, but there were a lot of small details he was missing in his defense that could have made a big difference.

Rob Font entered the final round continuing with the low stance. Although the game plan made sense it did seem to have affected the legs a bit causing him to react a little slower to Rosas Jr’s takedowns.

Rosas Jr. once again found the takedown in the first minute of the final round. Font sprawled hard but just kept giving Rosas Jr. the takedown. Rosas Jr. ended the fight with 16 successful takedowns on Font.

In the post-fight interview, Joe Rogan asked Rosas Jr. about his game plan heading into the fight. Rosas Jr. said he had been looking for a knockout but quickly realized the grappling exchanges were coming too easily. There were never many significant strikes landed that truly threatened a knockout, especially against a veteran striker like Rob Font. In the end, the young Rosas Jr.’s elite grappling proved to be the difference and secured him the victory.

Official result: Raul Rosas Jr. def Rob Font via Unanimous Decision (30-27×3)

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]]> Rob Font vs. Raul Rosas Jr. Signed for UFC 326 https://cagesidepress.com/2026/01/13/rob-font-vs-raul-rosas-jr-signed-for-ufc-326/ Tue, 13 Jan 2026 16:18:29 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=219025 Bantamweight Raul Rosas Jr. will be getting a big step up in competition for his first fight of 2026. Rosas (11-1), still just 21-years old, will take on Rob Font (22-9) at UFC 326 on March 7 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The booking (or in this case, re-booking) was first reported by MMA Fighting. Rosas […]

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]]> Bantamweight Raul Rosas Jr. will be getting a big step up in competition for his first fight of 2026.

Rosas (11-1), still just 21-years old, will take on Rob Font (22-9) at UFC 326 on March 7 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The booking (or in this case, re-booking) was first reported by MMA Fighting. Rosas Jr. confirmed on social media on Monday that he had a “contract signed” for his next bout.

Rosas Jr. and Font had been lined up to face off back in September, only for Raul to pull out of the bout. He was replaced by David Martinez, who earned a unanimous decision victory over Font. The loss snapped a two fight win streak for Font, who at 38 is 17 years older than his latest opponent.

As for Raul Rosas Jr., he’s won his last four bouts inside the octagon. Signed at age 17 off a win on Dana White’s Contender Series, Rosas Jr. was the youngest fighter in UFC history, and is 5-1 under the promotion’s banner overall. His lone setback came against Christian Rodriguez, who has become known as something of a “prospect killer” at this point.

UFC 326 is headlined by Max Holloway and Charles Oliveira, competing for Holloway’s “BMF” title. The following match-ups have been reported for the event:

  • Max Holloway (c) vs. Charles Oliveira – for the UFC “BMF” Championship
  • Renato Moicano vs. Brian Ortega
  • Caio Borralho vs. Reinier de Ridder
  • Cody Garbrandt vs. Xiao Long
  • Luke Fernandez vs. Rodolfo Bellato
  • Su Mudaerji vs. Jesús Santos Aguilar
  • Rafael Tobias vs. Diyar Nurgozhay
  • Cody Durden vs. Nyamjargal Tumendemberel
  • Brunno Ferreira vs. Gregory Rodrigues
  • Duško Todorović vs. Donte Johnson
  • Rob Font vs. Raul Rosas Jr.
  • Gaston Bolaños vs. Yoo Joo-sang

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]]> What’s Next: Noche UFC Losers https://cagesidepress.com/2025/09/15/whats-next-noche-ufc-losers-2/ Mon, 15 Sep 2025 15:55:03 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=214561 Noche UFC lost a few fights in the weeks leading up to the event, but Saturday still delivered an exciting night of bouts. In the main event, the #10 ranked featherweight, Jean Silva, took on the #2 ranked, Diego Lopes, in a gigantic fight for the UFC’s featherweight division. In the co-main event, longtime UFC […]

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]]> Noche UFC lost a few fights in the weeks leading up to the event, but Saturday still delivered an exciting night of bouts. In the main event, the #10 ranked featherweight, Jean Silva, took on the #2 ranked, Diego Lopes, in a gigantic fight for the UFC’s featherweight division. In the co-main event, longtime UFC bantamweight and #9 ranked Rob Font was denied and defeated by UFC newcomer David Martinez, in just his second fight for the promotion. All Mexican fighters on the card went home victorious. Six main card fighters will need matchups moving forward off of this historic third annual Noche UFC card.

Jean Silva

Diego Lopes delivered a spectacular spinning elbow KO to finish Jean Silva in the main event of Noche UFC. The back-and-forth fight was action-packed, for as long as it lasted- a couple more rounds and fans may have been calling for a rematch. Who knows, one could still materialize down the road. But the loss snapped Silva’s 13-fight win streak dating back to 2018. Silva is now 5-1 with the UFC.

Jean’s ideal matchup moving forward would be against either Brian Ortega or Patricio Pitbull. Matchups depend on a lot of Jean’s time of recovery after the damaged suffered Saturday. Ortega was in previous editions of losers however that’s in the event the featherweight moves to lightweight (after badly missing weight ahead of his last bout, opposite Aljamain Sterling last month). Ortega is ranked at #7 within the 145lbs. division.

Another good matchup for Silva would be against Patricio Pitbull who is ranked at #11. Pitbull got his first UFC win against #14, Dan Ige, in July, so he’s 1-1 now. Pitbull, due to his age and fight miles, has little time to make an impact within the UFC. A matchup with a prospect like Silva could perform a heavy lift for both gentlemen. Either matchup is fight night co main or main event material. And main card material for a pay per view card. Winner of that fight could be propelled into the top 5.

Jean’s next fight: Brian Ortega/ Patricio Pitbull

Rob Font

David Martinez defeated Rob Font in a very competitive unanimous decision in the co-main event of Noche UFC. Rob is now 3-3 in his last six over the past two years. Font just lost to a fighter in Martinez that was making his UFC debut.

At this point, Font should just rebook the fight with Raul Rosas Jr. Raul is currently unranked but has a lot of name value. Raul was scheduled to fight Font at Noche UFC but withdrew due to injury. Considering Font headed into the octagon Saturday ranked at #9, he’ll likely fall a ways in the rankings. Another chance to prove himself against another hungry young fighter may be just what the doctor ordered for the 38-year-old bantamweight.

Rob’s next fight: Raul Rosas Jr

Jared Gordon

Rafa Garcia finished Jared Gordon in the final round of their bout Saturday after treating fans to a couple rounds of edge-of-your-seat action. Gordon is now 2-2 in his last four fights since his no contest against King Green in early 2023.

Low hanging fruit type matchup here, would be pairing Gordon with Diego Ferreira. Jared is 38 and Diego is 40. Both fighters were finished at Noche UFC. Gordon is 9-7, 1 NC with the promotion while Ferreira is 10-7. This fight would make a lot of sense as Ferreira was supposed to take on King Green, a former opponent of Gordon’s a couple of months ago. Both fighters are on the exact right trajectory for this fight to go down. Both fighters are fan friendly, and it could easily be a fight on the main card of a fight night.

Jared’s next fight: Diego Ferreira

Dustin Stoltzfus

Dustin Stoltzfus was out-boxed in his unanimous decision defeat at the hands of Kelvin Gastelum on the main card of Noche UFC. The 191lbs. catchweight bout (Kelvin missed weight) was a big opportunity for Dustin to take down a former title challenger and TUF winner. With the loss, Stoltzfus is now 3-7 with the UFC since being signed on the 2020 season of the Contender Series.

Dustin should fight Jackson McVey in his next fight. Jackson is a 6-1 LFA product that lost his UFC debut back in July to Brunno Ferreria. Jackson and Dustin both suffered stoppage losses to Bruno Ferreira. Brunno stopped Dustin in June of 2024 with an elbow. Jackson had struggled to get his first bout with the promotion having a fight cancelled against Christopher Ewert and Sedriques Dumas before taking on Brunno. A fight between Jackson and Dustin is a much more appropriate of a matchup for both fighters. Has the makings to be a real barn burner. Strong possibility for the loser to be one loss away from being off the roster.

Dustin’s next fight: Jackson McVey

Diego Ferreira

Alexander Hernandez dropped and finished Diego Ferreira in the second round of their fight on Saturday. The 40-year-old lightweight dropped to 10-7 within the UFC since being signed with the promotion in 2014. Ferreira has lost five of his last seven bouts since early 2021 but is 2-2 in his last four.

Diego should take on Jared Gordon as mentioned previously in the article. Ferreira has had a long UFC career and proving legitimacy with a win over Gordon could keep the ball rolling for the Brazilian.

Diego’s next fight: Jared Gordon 

Quang Le

Santiago Luna flatlined Quang Le to open the main card of Noche UFC on Saturday. Le came out the gate hot landing a few power punches, but the tide was quickly turned as Quang lost his third fight with the promotional giant. Quang is now just 1-3 with the promotion after being signed on short notice in August of 2024 (was scheduled for 2024 Contender Series fight).

Le will likely get one more shot before he is axed from the roster, if he’s lucky. A good matchup would be against Toshiomi Kazama. Toshiomi is also 1-3 with the UFC. Toshiomi has been finished in all of his appearances (Le has been finished in all but his debut). Both fighters only victories have come by way of stoppage. Not sure where a matchup like this would land on a fight night card but it would likely end with a stoppage and the loser being released from the promotion.

Quang’s next fight: Toshiomi Kazama

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]]> Noche UFC: David Martínez Earns Hard-Fought Victory Over Rob Font https://cagesidepress.com/2025/09/13/noche-ufc-david-martinez-earns-hard-fought-victory-over-rob-font/ Sun, 14 Sep 2025 00:31:18 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=214460 Rob Font was originally slated to face young star Raul Rosas Jr. at Noche UFC on Saturday, but with Rosas out of the co-main event fight, David Martinez had been shifted up to the higher-profile match-up. A New England Cartel member, Font had won his last two outings, and was entering off a decision win […]

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]]> Rob Font was originally slated to face young star Raul Rosas Jr. at Noche UFC on Saturday, but with Rosas out of the co-main event fight, David Martinez had been shifted up to the higher-profile match-up.

A New England Cartel member, Font had won his last two outings, and was entering off a decision win over Jean Matsumoto, coincidentally another short-notice replacement after Dominick Cruz dropped out of that match-up and subsequently retired. As for Martinez, the 27-year-old came in as one of Mexico’s highest touted prospects after winning his promotional debut by first-round KO in March.

ROUND 1: Font came out with his usual boxing stance and Martinez started kicking his lead leg right away. The savvy veteran started timing Martinez’s kicks with straight rights. Font, being the far more experienced of the two, fought Martinez like he didn’t respect him, going forward with no regards for the strikes coming back. Martinez then landed a couple nice combos, but Font answered with a right hand that echoed in the building. Font mixed in a couple takedown attempts to give the Mexican some different looks, but Martinez stuffed all of them. Martinez ended the round with a spinning wheel kick.

ROUND 2: The first half of the second round looked a lot like the first. Font was marching forward, while Martinez was kicking his leg and occasionally forcing a clinch to stop Font’s forward movement. Martinez ate a jab to land a nice left hook that momentarily put Font in a chair. Despite Martinez’s best efforts, he couldn’t keep Font off of him, but he made sure to avoid Font’s big swings. After two rounds, the live odds had the fight as pick’em and it wasn’t difficult to see why.

ROUND 3: Neither fighter feeling confident in the scoring, they both came out swinging with Martinez getting the better of the exchanges early in the round. Both fighters refused to take a step backward and with neither of them accepting to back up, they kept trading in the center of the cage. Martinez was showing his youthful exuberance as he took Font’s best shots while keeping his own volume up. The Mexican’s speed was still giving Font some troubles as he stunned Font in the final minute. The crowd got so loud when Martinez score the knockdown in the final 10 seconds that referee Dan Miragliotta didn’t hear the buzzer and they had to sound it a second time.

David Martinez was given the win and the prospect will now crack the division’s rankings after just two fights in the promotion.

Official Result: David Martinez def. Rob Font by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

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]]> David Martinez Carries Mexico in His Heart Into Noche UFC Showdown with Rob Font https://cagesidepress.com/2025/09/11/david-martinez-carries-mexico-in-his-heart-into-noche-ufc-showdown-with-rob-font/ Thu, 11 Sep 2025 16:07:51 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=214343 UFC bantamweight David Martinez isn’t just stepping into a short-notice bout against Ronb Font at Noche UFC. He’s looking to make a statement against a ranked veteran. Ahead of their fight this Saturday, Martinez says he’s ready to test Font, capitalize on every mistake, and prove that his youth isn’t a liability but a weapon. […]

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]]> UFC bantamweight David Martinez isn’t just stepping into a short-notice bout against Ronb Font at Noche UFC. He’s looking to make a statement against a ranked veteran. Ahead of their fight this Saturday, Martinez says he’s ready to test Font, capitalize on every mistake, and prove that his youth isn’t a liability but a weapon.

Martinez (12-1) made it into the UFC off the back of a decision victory over Xavier Franklin at DWCS in 2024. After scoring an impressive first round TKO of Saimon Oliveira in his UFC debut, he steps into a short notice bout at Noche UFC.

“I had several changes. I was preparing for the Ecuadorian Carlos Vera. Then Quang Le, but just a couple of weeks ago I got a call from my manager to offer me this fight, a ranked fighter,” Martinez told reporters including Cageside Press on Wednesday.

“I discussed it with my family and my coaches, and I felt ready to go. My coaches felt the same so that’s how the fight came to be.”

The experience factor is clearly on Font’s side, but Martinez isn’t too concerned. He’s relying on his own background as he prepares for Saturday’s fight.

“He’s a high-level striker. He’s kept his spot at the top for a long time, but I’ve fought great fighters as well. It’s nothing I haven’t seen before, and I’m ready for this fight,” he said.

Noche UFC was originally slated for Guadalajara, Mexico, but Arena Guadalajara—the brand-new venue under construction—wasn’t completed in time. As a result, the card was eventually moved to San Antonio.

“At first I was (disappointed). I wanted to fight in my home country, representing for my people, but I have the people in my heart,” he said.

“I’m fighting with the Mexican people in my heart and that’s where they’ll be.”

Watch the full media day scrum with David Martinez above. He faces Rob Font this Saturday night at Noche UFC.

* Translated by Cageside Press

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]]> Rob Font Used To Short Notice Opponents, “Hell no, catch them now before they get better.” https://cagesidepress.com/2025/09/11/rob-font-used-to-short-notice-opponents-hell-no-catch-them-now-before-they-get-better/ Thu, 11 Sep 2025 13:52:47 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=214326 UFC bantamweights Rob Font and David Martinez are set to collide in what promises to be one of the most electrifying matchups of Noche UFC on Saturday night. Font (22-8) is taking on a late replacement opponent in Martinez after his original fight with Raul Rosas Jr. fell apart when the 20-year-old pulled out with […]

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]]> UFC bantamweights Rob Font and David Martinez are set to collide in what promises to be one of the most electrifying matchups of Noche UFC on Saturday night.

Font (22-8) is taking on a late replacement opponent in Martinez after his original fight with Raul Rosas Jr. fell apart when the 20-year-old pulled out with an injury. For Font, it’s just another twist he’s all too familiar with.

“You know what’s funny? I was like three weeks out like ‘man I hope he makes it to this fight’. I just had a feeling,” Font told reporters including Cageside Press on Wednesday.

“They sent the Countdown show for the co-main event and the camera guy got a call. I could hear him.”

The person on the other end of the call asked the cameraman if Font was nearby and could hear him. Then the cameraman stepped out of the room.

“I’m like ah man something’s up. Then the next day I got the call. The worst part about it is I’m kind of used to this. This is my 9th opponent in the UFC that this happened. My debut was like this,” he said.

The opponent is an unusual one for Font, given that this will be Martinez’s second official UFC bout. The difference in age and experience doesn’t bother Font one bit.

“Hell no, man. I go to catch them now before they get better, you know,” Font joked with a laugh.

“Give me them young guys. I catch them now before they get to like that 25, 27. Get that grown man strength.”

Watch the entire media day scrum with Rob Font above. He faces David Martinez at Noche UFC on Saturday night.

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]]> Raul Rosas Jr Out of Noche UFC Co-Headliner https://cagesidepress.com/2025/08/29/raul-rosas-jr-out-of-noche-ufc-co-headliner/ Fri, 29 Aug 2025 13:17:24 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=213813 This year’s Noche UFC had already lost its location, shifting from Guadalajara, Mexico to San Antonio, Texas due to construction delays at the venue in question. Now, it has lost its co-main event as well. Raul Rosas Jr. (11-1), who was supposed to have faced Rob Font (22-8) in the penultimate fight of the September […]

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]]> This year’s Noche UFC had already lost its location, shifting from Guadalajara, Mexico to San Antonio, Texas due to construction delays at the venue in question.

Now, it has lost its co-main event as well.

Raul Rosas Jr. (11-1), who was supposed to have faced Rob Font (22-8) in the penultimate fight of the September card, has been forced out of the bout due to injury. News of the change was first reported by Wristlock MMA.

The bantamweight clash was the highest on the card to feature Mexican-born talent. The main event features a pair of Brazilian fighters, Diego Lopes (who fights out of Mexico) and Jean Silva.

Rosas, who appeared on Dana White’s Contender Series as a 17-year old to earn a UFC deal, has won his last four fights. Font has notched back-to-back victories, and was looked at as another step up in competition for the youngster.

The nature of Rosas Jr’s injury is yet to be revealed.

Noche UFC takes place on September 13, 2025 at the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas and is booked to celebrate Mexican Independence Day (Sept. 16). The following match-ups have been reported for the event:

  • Diego Lopes vs. Jean Silva
  • Rafa García vs. Jared Gordon
  • José Daniel Medina vs. Duško Todorović
  • Claudio Puelles vs. Joaquim Silva
  • Tatiana Suarez vs. Amanda Lemos
  • Zachary Reese vs. Sedriques Dumas
  • Jesús Santos Aguilar vs. Luis Gurule
  • Montserrat Rendon vs. Alice Pereira
  • Alessandro Costa vs. Alden Coria
  • David Martinez vs. Quang Le
  • Kelvin Gastelum vs. Dustin Stoltzfus
  • Rodrigo Sezinando vs. Daniil Donchenko
  • Alexander Hernandez vs. Carlos Diego Ferreira

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]]> What’s Next: UFC Seattle Winners https://cagesidepress.com/2025/02/24/whats-next-ufc-seattle-winners/ Tue, 25 Feb 2025 02:47:46 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=203536 The UFC’s fourth ever trip to the grunge capital (and first since 2013) had something for everyone. The UFC Seattle card started off with five consecutive knockouts followed by two slick submissions. It gave us highlight reel finishes from Ricky Simón and Jean Silva, an entertaining feature bout and capped off the night with main […]

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]]> The UFC’s fourth ever trip to the grunge capital (and first since 2013) had something for everyone. The UFC Seattle card started off with five consecutive knockouts followed by two slick submissions. It gave us highlight reel finishes from Ricky Simón and Jean Silva, an entertaining feature bout and capped off the night with main and co-main events that had real stakes attached to them. It’s time, now, to do some matchmaking for a card that had a bit of everything, including some controversy.

Song Yadong

Even though the way it ended was controversial, Song did have time to show us he was ahead of Henry Cejudo through three rounds in Saturday’s UFC Seattle main event. I personally have little interest in running this fight back as I believe there are more compelling matchups out there for both Song and Cejudo.

I would love to see Umar Nurmagomedov fight Sean O’Malley, with the winner earning their rematch with Merab Dvalishvili, but it appears as though the promotion will just book the O’Malley rematch right away. That means Nurmagomedov will need a different fight. Could it be Petr Yan? Maybe, but I would be lying if I said I didn’t find a Song Yadong matchup to be intriguing.

Song has been given opportunities to take that next step in the past with fights against Yan and Cory Sandhagen. I could see people wanting to see Song win at least one more fight before getting that type of opportunity again, especially given the unsatisfying nature of the main event’s ending. For that reason, I wouldn’t be opposed to a Marlon Vera rematch or a fight with Mario Bautista. In the end, I do prefer the Umar fight.

Song’s next fight: Umar Nurmagomedov

Anthony Hernandez

While it was revealed that Hernandez was compromised coming into this rematch with Brendan Allen, he still got the job done by unanimous decision. This marks Fluffy’s seventh straight win, tying Caio Borralho for the second longest win streak at middleweight behind only the division’s reigning champion.

With Borralho and Nassourdine Imavov on impressive runs, and after Gregory Rodrigues failed to insert himself in that mix last week, let’s see if Hernandez can get himself into that title picture to make 185 even more exciting. I believe Hernandez has earned the opportunity to fight a top5 contender. With both Sean Strickland and Robert Whittaker coming off losses, I would look to them. Additionally, with talks of a Fight Night card in Australia sometime in the summer, wouldn’t Whittaker vs Hernandez be a perfect headliner?

Hernandez’s next fight: Robert Whittaker

Rob Font

Every time I believe Font’s fall off is finally upon us, he finds a way to turn back the clock and get a big win. After back-to-back damaging losses to Jose Aldo and ‘Chito’ Vera, he took a year off and came back by knocking out the then streaking Adrian Yanez in three minutes. That performance was then followed by convincing losses to Cory Sandhagen and Deiveson Figueiredo, but once again, he bounced back with a win against youngster Kyler Phillips. And now after taking Jean Matsumoto’s 0 at UFC Seattle, he finds himself on his first win streak since 2021.

Font was originally meant to be Dominick Cruz’s retirement fight, but agreed to fight the young, unranked, undefeated Matsumoto. This represented a big favour for the promotion as this card was starting to fall apart. It is not unusual for the UFC to repay fighters for doing them a solid.

Taking that into account, I believe the way to repay Font is with a fight with the man who lost in the main event: Henry Cejudo. At 37, Font is coming off back-to-back fights against fighters ranked below him that were 8 and 12 years his juniors. Cejudo is 38 himself, has a relatively big name and is ranked slightly ahead of Font. It’s a booking that would be both rankings and age appropriate.

Font’s next fight: Henry Cejudo

Jean Silva

Silva was in the running for ‘Rookie of the Year’ in 2024 after going 3-0 with three knockouts. But the moment he really made a splash was when he fought on back-to-back events. He went up a weight class to knockout Drew Dober at lightweight on short notice after having just KO’d Charles Jourdain two weeks prior.

It was a well-earned seven-month layoff for ‘Lord’. At UFC Seattle he made quick work of Melsik Baghdsaryan, who is a dangerous striker in his own right. On a card that saw eight finishes, Silva’s finish was unquestionably going to land him a ‘Performance of the Night’ bonus. Surely, ranked opposition is next for him. He called out Bryce Mitchell and Mitchell entertained the idea on social media afterwards. However, I haven’t forgotten that Doo Ho Choi called out Mitchell first after his stellar performance against Nate Landwehr in December. I had Choi fighting Mitchell in my matchmaking article after UFC 310.

In the flood of announcements we got from Dana White last week, Dan Ige vs Sean Woodson was revealed to be on the UFC 314 card in Miami. Silva can face the winner of that fight. If it’s Ige, then Silva gets to measure himself up against the division’s litmus test; a test that the Movsar Evloevs, Diego Lopes’s, and Lerone Murphys of the world passed. If it’s Woodson, then get to see what should be an undeniably funny visual as a 6’2” featherweight squares off against a 5’7” man of the weight class.

Silva’s next fight: Ige/Woodson winner

Alonzo Menifield

While Menifield got his hand raised and that is always the most important thing, it wasn’t exactly the most inspiring of performances, even though it was somehow awarded ‘Fight of the Night’ honours following UFC Seattle. I don’t think a split decision against a debuting fighter should give Menifield the right to fight up the rankings. Especially not considering he got KO’d in his two fights prior.

They could simply re-book the Oumar Sy fight that was supposed to happen at UFC London in March. However, I would actually prefer if Sy had to prove himself against unranked opposition one more time as I believe he’s still a bit green. Right before Menifield walked out to the octagon, Ion Cutelaba earned his second straight victory by submitting rising prospect Ibo Aslan. Both Menifield and Cutelaba bring the action in every fight they are in and have both been in the UFC for quite some time. It’s one of those fights where you’re surprised to learn it’s never been booked.

Menifield’s next fight: Ion Cutelaba

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