5 biggest winners from UFC Fight Night: Rob Font vs. Jose Aldo

#2. Clay Guida – defeated Leonardo Santos in a UFC lightweight bout

Clay Guida may have saved his UFC career with his win over Leonardo Santos.

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.

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#1. Jose Aldo – defeated Rob Font in a UFC bantamweight bout

Jose Aldo looked genuinely fabulous in his win over Rob Font last night.

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.