The Ultimate Fighting Championship stayed at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada tonight for UFC on ESPN 31: “Font vs Aldo.” The event featured a bantamweight contender’s matchup between Rob Font, who had won four straight fights, and former featherweight champ José “Scarface” Aldo.
In the lightweight co-main event, Brad “Quake” Riddell clashed with Rafael “Ataman” Fiziev. Elsewhere on the main card tonight, Jimmy “The Brute” Crute faced off against Jamahal “Sweet Dreams” Hill in a featured light heavyweight matchup. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the card.
José “Scarface” Aldo vs Rob Font
Round 1:
Font started quickly with one-two combinations and he switched stances frequently while darting in and out. He took Aldo’s back and dragged him down momentarily. Aldo stood and broke away, but Font chased after him with hooks and an uppercut. Font attacked Aldo’s body with three right hands and Also responded with two overhand rights. He followed with a left hook to the liver and a hard jab that snapped Font’s head back. Font flurried to the body and head, but Aldo blocked most of the strikes. He dropped Font with a straight right hand late in the round, but time expired before he could follow up. 10-9 Aldo due to the late knockdown.
Round 2:
Font appeared to be recovered as the second round began and he resumed landing jab-cross combos and leg kicks. Aldo jabbed and blocked a leg kick, then stunned Font with another right hook. Font recovered quickly and he landed a one-two and a jab. As Font threw more jabs, Aldo punched to the body. He connected with an overhand right and blocked a Font body kick. Font tried to clinch and Aldo easily pushed him away. He landed another hook to the body and a hard jab. 10-9 Aldo.
Round 3:
Aldo opened round three with jabs and a hard leg kick. Font was effective with his own jab, however, and Aldo’s right eye began to swell shut. He stuffed a takedown and wound up on top of Font, almost passing to mount. Font got back to half-guard, but Aldo moved to side control. Font scrambled from the bottom and regained full guard, then postured for an armbar. Aldo easily avoided it, but Font worked back to his feet with just under two minutes to go. Font attacked with hooks to the body and Aldo dropped him with a leg kick. Font stood back up and he landed a right hook and a front kick to the body. Aldo chopped away at his leg with another kick late in the round. 10-9 Aldo.
Round 4:
Aldo hurt Font early in the fourth round with a left-right combo and a jumping knee. Font backed up to the cage and Aldo landed more punches. Font dove at Aldo’s leg, but he wound up on the bottom with Aldo on top in his half-guard. Font’s left eye swelled up and Aldo passed to side control. Font tried to power out and stand up, but he could only manage to get back to half-guard. Aldo nearly mounted him and Font used the opportunity to regain full guard. He landed some short elbows from the bottom to Aldo’s face, but Aldo passed to half-guard again and finished the round on top. 10-9 Aldo.
Round 5:
Font was aggressive with his punches to begin the final round and he landed overhand rights before clinching with Aldo against the cage. Aldo pushed him away and landed a left-right combo before Font tied him up in another clinch. He landed a hard elbow and an uppercut, but Aldo hurt him with a one-two combo. Font staggered and fell, and Aldo mounted him on the ground. Font rolled over and gave up his back. Aldo trapped him in a body triangle and locked on a rear-naked choke, but Font was able to turn his head to the side and he escaped. Aldo remained on his back until the final bell. 10-9 Aldo.
Winner: José Aldo by Unanimous Decision (50-45, 50-45, 49-46) after five rounds. He improves to 31-7-0.
Rafael “Ataman” Fiziev vs Brad “Quake” Riddell
Round 1:
The fight opened with an exchange of leg kicks and Fiziev landed one to the body. Another body kick scored for Fiziev and Riddell answered with a right cross. Fiziev continued to throw kicks and Riddell responded with a combination. He grazed with a right hook and blocked a head kick from Fiziev. In the final minute, Fiziev landed more leg and body kicks, but Riddell cracked him with a three-punch combination shortly before the bell. Close opening round. 10-9 Fiziev, but not by much.
Round 2:
Fiziev landed two combinations in the second round as the fighters traded hard punches in close. A step-in elbow from Fiziev opened a cut on Riddell’s right cheek, but Riddell answered back with an overhand right. Fiziev wobbled him briefly with a left hook and he opened a second cut above Riddell’s left eye with a right hand. Riddell clinched, but Fiziev pushed him away and scored with a right hook and a knee. He held Riddell against the fence and landed two more knees to the body. After the fighters separated, Fiziev landed a leg kick and he countered a body kick from Riddell with a lead left hook. 10-9 Fiziev.
Round 3:
The cageside doctor checked on the deep gash above Riddell’s left eye before round three began, but the fight was allowed to continue and Riddell took Fiziev down. Fiziev scrambled up to his feet and he landed a right hook and a body kick. Hard left hooks landed for both men and Fiziev was cut over his left eye. Both men landed lead left hooks and Fiziev rocked Riddell with a spinning wheel kick to the temple. Riddell froze in place and then fell to his knees as referee Herb Dean dove in to top the fight. Riddell was badly rocked and the stoppage was a good one.
Winner: Rafael Fiziev by TKO (Spinning Wheel Kick) at 2:20 of round three. He improves to 11-1-0.
Jamahal “Sweet Dreams” Hill vs Jimmy “The Brute” Crute
Round 1:
Crute opened the fight with six kicks to Hill’s leg and body, but Hill dropped him face-first with a lead right hook. Crute got back to his feet and seemed to recover, but Hill floored him again with a short right hook and then knocked him out cold with a follow-up punch on the ground.
Winner: Jamahal Hill by KO (Punches) at 0:48 of round one. He improves to 9-1-0, 1 NC.
Clay “The Carpenter” Guida vs Leonardo Santos
Round 1:
Santos landed two strong leg kicks in the opening minute and he hurt Guida with a flurry of punches. Guida dove at his ankle and Santos blasted him with hammerfists to the face and punches to the body. The body shots hurt Guida, but he managed to get back to his feet. Santos continued to land punches and then dropped Guida with a knee to the face. Guida stood again and Santos continued to land knees. Guida survived the onslaught and Santos slowed down. The fighters separated and time was called to replace Guida’s mouthpiece. Action resumed and a fatigued Santos circled away from Guida. Guida scored a takedown and finished the round with elbows from Santos’s half-guard. 10-8 Santos due to the near finishes, but the momentum is all with Guida.
Round 2:
Guida immediately closed the distance and took Santos’s back. Santos grabbed the cage to prevent himself from being taken down, but Guida got him down on his second try and looked to set up a rear-naked choke. He got the choke and Santos tapped out. Incredible comeback.
Winner: Clay Guida by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 1:21 of round two. He improves to 37-21-0.
Chris “The Action Man” Curtis vs Brendan “All In” Allen
Round 1:
Allen picked Curtis up and dumped him to the mat, then hopped on Curtis’s back as he stood up. Curtis shook him off and landed a left hook to the body. Two more left hands landed for Curtis, and Allen responded with a right hook and a knee. He countered a Curtis left hand with a head kick that partially landed. Three body kicks scored for Allen and Curtis landed a lead right hook. After Curtis put together a combination of a head kick and two punches, Allen landed a head kick of his own and then pulled Curtis down to the mat with a heel hook. Curtis defended and punched from the top before the bell. Close round. 10-9 Allen by a slim margin.
Round 2:
Curtis flurried to the body after taking a leg kick from Allen in the second round. Allen landed a body kick, but Curtis badly rocked him with a right hook. Allen stumbled and backed up against the cage. Curtis swarmed on him with uppercuts and two knees, which dropped Allen and ended the fight.
Winner: Chris Curtis by TKO (Punches & Knees) at 1:58 of round two. He improves to 28-8-0.
Alex “The Great White” Morono vs Mickey Gall
Round 1:
Morono struck first with a right hook and Gall landed jabs and a leg kick. Both men connected with overhand rights in an exchange and Morono countered Gall’s jabs with two of his own. After another exchange of right hands, Morono dropped Gall with a jab and he dove in with more punches on the ground. Gall recovered and he tried to set up a kneebar as Morono landed occasional punches from the top. The fighters stood with ten seconds to go and Gall landed looping hooks before the bell. 10-9 Morono.
Round 2:
Gall landed a right hook early in the second round and Morono answered back with a two-punch combo and an overhand right. Gall stunned Morono with a left hook, and he landed two more left hands before Morono responded with a right cross. Gall jabbed and he mixed in more right hands while avoiding most of Morono’s counters. After exchanging right hooks, Morono landed a front kick and he stuffed a takedown attempt from Gall. Shortly before the bell, Morono landed a looping left hook. Much closer round. 10-9 Morono, barely, due to the strong finish.
Round 3:
Morono connected with a right hook in the opening seconds of round three. The fighters circled and traded jabs, but neither could find the mark with right hooks until Gall landed one near the midway point in the round. Morono threw more jabs and he landed a counter right uppercut as Gall attempted to clinch. He briefly secured a clinch after landing a left-right combo, but Morono quickly pushed him away and resumed circling on the outside. He grazed with a spinning backfist and both men threw wild hooks in the final seconds. 10-9 Morono.
Winner: Alex Morono by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 21-7-0, 1 NC.
(Undercard results and play-by-play on Page Two.)