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While last night’s UFC Fight Night show was not chock-full of top contenders, it still featured many stars looking to rise up the rankings.
UFC Fight Night: Rob Font vs. Jose Aldo saw many explosive finishes that’ll be talked about for some time. More to the point, some fighters picked up valuable wins going into 2022.
How many of last night’s winners will be able to follow up their victories tonight with wins next year remains to be seen. However, for now, they’ll certainly be carrying plenty of momentum.
On that note, here are the five biggest winners from UFC Fight Night: Rob Font vs. Jose Aldo.
#5. Chris Curtis – defeated Brendan Allen in a UFC middleweight bout
When Chris Curtis made his UFC debut last month, it looked like he’d been signed as a classic enhancement opponent for a more favored fighter.
Faced with Phil’ Megatron’ Hawes – arguably the UFC middleweight division’s best prospect – nobody gave Curtis a chance. So MMA fans across the world were stunned when ‘Action Man’ pulled off an upset TKO win.
Clearly not wanting to lose any momentum, Curtis was back last night, taking a late-notice booking against another highly touted prospect, Brendan Allen. Again, few expected Curtis to succeed.
Incredibly, though, ‘Action Man’ pulled off the upset, this time recovering from a dodgy first round to wade through Allen’s offense. He hit Allen with thudding blows until ‘All In’ could take no more.
The win was enough to earn Curtis his second UFC win, and his second $50k performance bonus too. That’s something he has claimed will be enough to move him up through two tax brackets.
Whether Curtis continues his unlikely run into 2022 remains to be seen. However, his record suggests he’s more of a journeyman than a prospect despite his current seven-fight winning run. Based on what he has shown so far, it’ll definitely be fun to see what he does from here.
#4. Jamahal Hill – defeated Jimmy Crute in a UFC light heavyweight bout
UFC light heavyweight prospect Jamahal Hill probably had his back to the wall coming into last night’s clash with Jimmy Crute.
The lanky striker was destroyed by Paul Craig in his last UFC bout, ending his unbeaten run and exposing him pretty badly. Had he lost here, his UFC career might well have been over.
Hill clearly recognised that, though, and came into last night’s bout looking more serious than he has ever been before. That approach soon turned out to be fruitful. A big shot in the fight’s opening sequence knocked Crute down.
While the Aussie got back to his feet, his eye looked badly busted up, and moments later, another crushing right hook sent him down for good.
Hill has always had the explosive striking to take out almost any opponent at 205 lbs. However, his previous octagon showings always left more questions than answers, especially the application of his skills.
There could be no such questions last night in what was Hill’s best UFC showing to date, despite the fight only lasting 48 seconds. Hill was undoubtedly one of the show’s biggest winners, and he should go into 2022 with plenty of momentum behind him.
#3. Rafael Fiziev – defeated Brad Riddell in a UFC lightweight bout
There was plenty of hype around Rafael Fiziev going into last night’s show. The native of Kazakhstan had used his explosive striking to win his last four bouts in the UFC, picking up three $50K bonuses in the process.
Last night saw him pick up his fourth bonus cheque in what was undoubtedly the biggest win of his UFC career. That should be enough to propel him into a clash with a top ten-ranked lightweight next year.
Fiziev faced Brad Riddell in a genuinely excellent striking bout. While ‘Quake’ had his moments, it was clear the Kazakh fighter’s speed was giving him difficulties.
Nobody expected ‘Ataman’ to finish Riddell with a picture-perfect spinning wheel kick, though. Fiziev landed the shot midway through the third round directly to the face of his opponent. While Riddell didn’t go down instantly, he was frozen in time, forcing Herb Dean to call a justified stoppage.
Based on the striking skill, explosive power and athleticism he has shown in his past five bouts, it’s clear Fiziev is a threat to anyone in the lightweight division. Given the talent in the top ten, the UFC could match ‘Ataman’ with anyone and produce an excellent fight.
Can he rise into title contention? Only time will tell, but based on what he showed last night, he has got a great chance.
#2. Clay Guida – defeated Leonardo Santos in a UFC lightweight bout
With the UFC trimming veterans from their roster in an apparent cost-cutting process these days, Clay Guida had reason to be concerned coming into last night’s event.
‘The Carpenter’, who has been with the promotion since October 2006, had won just one of his last four bouts. He was coming off a decision loss to Mark Madsen. Had he been beaten by Leonardo Santos, he might well have been cut. Early on, it looked like defeat was about to come to fruition.
Santos battered Guida in the early going, hurting him with body shots and knees, and the fight looked almost over, as ‘The Carpenter’ was barely defending. Referee Keith Peterson decided to let it continue, though. While Guida was tough enough to survive, Santos’s gas tank was simply left empty by his attempts to finish the fight.
The Brazilian looked exhausted as the second round began, allowing Guida to take him down. From there, ‘The Carpenter’ took the back of his opponent and choked him out, becoming the first man to submit the Brazilian jiu-jitsu legend in his MMA career.
Not only did this win likely save Guida’s UFC career, but it was also a monumental one when you consider the grappling prowess of his opponent. The end of Guida’s time in the octagon may well come in 2022, but for now, he remains one of last night’s biggest winners.
#1. Jose Aldo – defeated Rob Font in a UFC bantamweight bout
Last night’s main event pitted former UFC featherweight kingpin Jose Aldo against a tough opponent in No.4-ranked bantamweight Rob Font.
In the eyes of many, the Brazilian was the final hurdle for Font before a potential title shot. However, not only did Aldo prove that he’s far more than an obstacle, but he put on a performance to suggest he’s still a genuine title contender himself.
Font landed his fair share of decent shots in the clash, but for the most part, he was simply outclassed by a far more skilled opponent. Aldo hurt him with strikes in almost every round. While he was unable to find a finish, he showed off an overall game that we haven’t often seen from him. Eventually, he took Font down and worked him over on the mat, too.
When you consider how Font had largely dominated opponents such as Cody Garbrandt and Marlon Moraes, it’s difficult to play down quite how good a win this was for Aldo.
Where does he go from here? Aldo has called out TJ Dillashaw in what would be a genuinely fabulous bout. Given that the next UFC bantamweight title clash is set – a rematch between Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan – it’d probably make perfect sense to book Aldo against Dillashaw.
Either way, any thoughts of Aldo being past his best should probably fade away after this truly excellent showing. That makes the Brazilian the biggest winner in last night’s event.
