On the main card of UFC 287, we are going to see an absolute banger in the bantamweight division. Top twelve contenders will battle it out as sixth ranked Rob Font (19-6) takes on the surging 12th ranked contender Adrian Yanez (16-3).
For Rob Font, this fight will be a nice change of pace back to three rounds. Font has headlined three consecutive Fight Nights that all went the full 25 minutes. Now, he can focus on doing his damage over the course of three rounds which I think will help him.
Since 2018, Font has gone 4-2 but those two losses came in his last two fights. Font has some of the cleanest boxing in the division and has tremendous volume. However, the power disadvantage led to defeats against Chito Vera and Jose Aldo. That could also play a factor tomorrow night.
Adrian Yanez hasn’t lost a fight since 2018 and he’s been perfect inside the octagon. After earning a contract on Dana White’s Contender Series with a knockout in under 40 seconds, he’s gone a perfect 5-0 in the UFC with only one fight going the distance. That said, tomorrow night is a massive step up in competition as he goes straight to the deep end of the 135 pool.
UFC 287 Prediction
Both of these fighters have tremendous boxing. Personally, this is one of the fights that I’m looking forward to the most when I look at the UFC 287 card. One big advantage Rob Font has is the clean boxing combined with the tremendous volume.
Yanez is going to have the speed and explosiveness advantage, but Font is calculated and knows how to add up points. If you look at his last fight with Chito Vera, the striking numbers are heavily skewed towards Font. However, he ate the more devastating shots which lost him the fight.
If he’s using his level changes and can avoid Yanez’s power, I think there’s a clear path for him to win a decision. He’s going to need to stay long with his jab and keep his feet moving. If he gets flat-footed, he’s going to be in trouble in the pocket.
For Yanez, he needs to get inside in this fight. Use his power combinations when things get close. If he gets stuck in a point fight on the outside, he’s going to lose. However, if he can get inside and rip power shots to the body and up top, he can hurt Font and win this fight.
The competition level of Font has me leaning towards him in this fight. His experience with being in there against some of the best in the world is going to help him. I think he stays smart in this fight and frustrates Yanez with range and combinations. Rob Font gets back on track at UFC 287 and gives Yanez his first loss inside the octagon.
Prediction: Rob Font by Decision