UFC Fight Night: Font vs. Vera was headlined by a crucial bantamweight matchup between Rob Font and Marlon Vera. Two of the most entertaining fighters on the roster, Font and Vera surprisingly went the distance of twenty-five minutes.
Unshockingly, they delivered an absolute banger which was awarded the 'Fight of the Night', meaning an extra $50K for each fighter. However, Rob Font missed weight, which means 'Chito' Vera took home $100K.
Brazilian newcomer Joanderson Brito earned a 'Performance of the Night' bonus for his huge upset win over Andre Fili just 41 seconds into the opening round.
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UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo's brother Francisco also competed on the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night: Font vs. Vera. 'Sniper' also earned a POTN bonus for a huge upset win over touted flyweight prospect Daniel da Silva. Silva tapped out to a slick kneebar from Figueiredo at 01:18 of the opening round.
Both Brazilian winners took home $50K for their efforts.
UFC Fight Night: Font vs. Vera ended with a decision victory for 'Chito'
Rob Font came out as the early aggressor against 'Chito' Vera, finding his mark with his signature stinging jab. However, Vera shifted the momentum towards the end of the second round, dropping his opponent with a brutal left hook.
'Chito' would go on to drop Font in the third round as well and stunned him in the championship rounds, though he never found the finish. While 'The Boston Finisher' kept finding his mark till the end, Vera did enough to reel in an emphatic unanimous decision win.
UFC veteran Andrei Arlovski took on the up-and-coming Jake Collier in the co-main event at UFC Vegas 53. Arlovski went toe-to-toe against the 33-year-old Collier, eventually winning a controversial split decision.
Joanderson Brito faced Andre Fili in a featherweight matchup on the main card of UFC Fight Night: Font vs. Vera. Going in as a -300 underdog on some books, 'Tubarao' scored a huge upset win with a first-round KO of Fili.
In their lightweight showdown, Grant Dawson scored a third-round submission win over Jared Gordon. 'KGD' dominated his opponent in the clinch throughout before sinking in a rear naked choke in round three.
Featherweight veteran Darren Elkins fought an absolute war against Tristan Connelly at UFC Fight Night: Font vs. Vera. 'The Damage' outclassed Connelly to earn a unanimous decision win, making it his sixteenth featherweight win.
Krzysztof Jotko and Gerald Meerschaert clashed at middleweight to start off the main-card action. The Polish fighter got the better of Meerschaert on the feet and avoided enough grappling exchanges to earn a unanimous decision win.