UFC bantamweight Rob Font believes he made ‘the right call’ in denying short notice interim title shot

UFC Fight Night head Rob Font has no regrets about turning down an interim UFC bantamweight title to Petr Yan.

Font was the first of two picks selected to replace UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling in an interim title fight with former champion and top contender Yan. The 4th-placed contender opted out of the UFC 267 co-main event on October 30, which was ultimately awarded to fellow contender Cody Sandhagen. Font was recently cleared of liability by USADA for adverse drug trial findings. He contracted COVID-19 shortly after.

“I think it was the right call. It sucks. I’m still dealing with the whole USADA situation. I’m not even sure if I’ll fight next year,” Font told CBS Sports. before his negative clash with Jose Aldo at UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas. “We went to Texas to relax and hang out. We finally had the hearing and we got through it. We cleared everything up. Unfortunately, obviously, coming to Texas, we got it. was around and got COVID. I hurt, My throat is killing me. My girl is vomiting everywhere. We finally got over it, we were in the house for two weeks. My manager called me and said, ‘Hey, do you want to go to Dubai?’

“I was in pain, I didn’t work out. We went out, did a little jog and ran fast to see how far I had come. It wasn’t so bad but man, it felt rushed. It was. a long flight, a lot.

The complicated situation of the UFC bantamweight division leaves Font (19-4) in limbo even as he manages to score an impressive win over Aldo (30-7). Exploring the road to a split at the age of 135, Font envisions the No. 1 contender’s match against former champion TJ Dillashaw in the near future.

Check out the full interview with Rob Font below.

“If he’s not guaranteed to get the next title, as he said, I think that’s the fight,” Font said. “The impatience [Sterling] still have to go back and fight Petr. If he stays out, I can jump in there and fight Petr. If Aljamain is healthy and active, I think they will fight and that leaves me and TJ out of there.

“I’m in a weird position where even when I finish or win, I’m stuck waiting.”

Font, 34 years old, only a year younger than Aldo; However, the Brazilian legend has seven years of experience compared to the Boston-born player.

“He’s Aldo. He’s seen it all and done it all. The level of experience is there,” Font said. “Obviously I can’t match him in terms of experience. I followed him when I first started this. I learned a lot from him but also learned from him a lot. I’m not going to take advantage of the mistakes he’s made before and make him make the same mistakes again.”

Font (19-4) was marked as one of the highlights when he arrived in the UFC, knocking out George Roop in the first round in 2014. Alternating wins and losses from 2017 to 2018. 2018 has slowed his momentum; however, he came to life with consecutive wins against Bellator bantamweight champion Sergio Pettis, Ricky Simon, Marlon Moraes and former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt.

“I stopped trying to be perfect,” says Font. “I stopped waiting for the perfect opportunity to make it happen. Especially after that [Raphael] Assuncao fight, I will never go out like that again. Go and attack these wars and allow yourself to be messed up. Sometimes I tried to be too perfect or I wouldn’t throw too much if it wasn’t a perfect shot or if it wasn’t technically looking. I won’t throw it.

“Now I just throw anything and have fun with it. There’s a game plan but if I need to switch it, switch it immediately. Read and react. If you notice in most of the my game i try to put back pressure on these guys i’m trying to get them to put their back foot and go against them it’s just allowing yourself to fail not trying not to fail or look bad. If you look ugly, so what? Pick up and have fun.”

Font also gave his assessment of his bantamweight counterpart Cory Sandhagen, who, despite having a high ceiling for potential, has fallen short of Yan, Dillashaw and Sterling in the last year.

“I just think he’s still finding himself,” Font said. “He’s done all the tough fights. Three losses isn’t a big deal in MMA when you break them all. It’s not like boxing where you take three losses and you’re basically done. . Especially at the top of the table. A big win and he’s back there and [everyone] forget that he even lost battles. Now we are talking about performing on the night of the fight. The fight with Aljamain was super quick and finished it. The match against TJ is almost over, but I feel like he’s back too much. In the fight with Petr Yan, he did a good search for the first two [rounds] and then slow down.

“For him, it’s all about execution. He has the skill set, he’s capable of doing it. I believe he’s one of the best strikers in the league. He finished. it goes well together I think sometimes he backs down a little bit too much and it hurts he’s dangerous, he’s sleek I like his style I’ve learned a lot things from his style I observe his style I imitate a lot of what he does He beat two guys that I lost so he is definitely dangerous. It just happened that night. When it comes to this game, you can be good at every aspect but that’s going to come down.”

Font fully expects and endorses a future war against Sandhagen.

“It’s bound to happen,” he said. “I see he’s been around for a while. It’s going to be a great fight because he has such a fun style that he delivers.”