Bantamweight
Thomas Almeida (21-2) vs. Rob Font (14-3)ODDS: Almeida (-115), Font (-105)
ANALYSIS: In so many ways, these two bantamweights are made for one another. In a broad stroke, you could dismiss Almeida as a current or even potential bantamweight title contender, but if you were to do so, you would do it on defensive grounds. Meanwhile, Font is far from any sort of defensive genius, but the Mark DellaGrotte understudy can certainly put his offense together.
Font, the righty in this case, has one inch of reach and height on his opponent. Does it amount to anything in this case? Font is able to utilize sudden counters to set up longer rushes of punches, elbows and especially articulate knees, but is this a good idea against Almeida? Despite being a generally rangy fighter, Almeida excels when he punches on the inside and especially when he can grab at least a single collar tie and deliver knees. Font seems, if unwittingly, to deliberately play into this range of striking.
This fight may have everything to do with starting fast and starting hard. Almeida, despite all of his finishing plaudits and vernally quick contests, is not a fast starter. His UFC career has revealed him to be an awkward bit of counter-knockout artist who is willing, perhaps even needing, to eat some necessary shots before he gets into full effect. This is a problem. The question becomes whether or not it rears its nasty head in this bout. I am hinging on no.
Font is a fantastic fighter, one who deserves to have his UFC contract retained regardless of how the numbers end up looking. However, Font is not a quick starter in his own right, and unless he lands a picture-perfect counter in the first five minutes, he will not get the chances to jump all over the lackadaisical Brazilian. Font will get in his early pumps, but look for Almeida to wake up, land the more assertive blows in close and, even if he does not garner a stoppage, win at least two fun-as-heck rounds to pocket a decision.
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