Preview: UFC Fight Night 154 ‘Moicano vs. The Korean Zombie’
Lineker vs. Font
Bantamweights
John Lineker (31-9) vs. Rob Font (16-4)Advertisement
What a difference an injury makes. Initially, the co-main event of this card was a solid if unremarkable bout between Font and Cody Stamann, but with the latter suffering an injury, Lineker steps in to try and bring some violence to the proceedings. Lineker has been an action hero since he came onto the UFC scene in 2012, owing to his constant aggression and willingness to stalk through punches to pour on his own. After constant weight misses at flyweight forced him to move up to 135 pounds, things only got better. Lineker carried up all his speed and power and was even more willing to let go and be a tsunami of violence. Things have started to slow a bit in recent years, though, particularly after T.J. Dillashaw broke the Brazilian’s jaw in a fight at the tail end of 2016. Lineker has fought less and been slightly less willing to pull the trigger, going from complete madman to simply aggressive by the standard of any other fighter, which was probably the difference in his narrow loss to Cory Sandhagen in April. If nothing else, Lineker is back to fighting at a quick turnaround, and this rematch of his 2016 encounter with Font represents a good opportunity for “Hands of Stone” to get back on track.
Font has been a fun addition to the bantamweight division, even if he is a frustrating fighter from bout to bout. At his best, Font does an excellent job of chasing down his opponents and laying on the violence, whether it is using his knockout power or a functional submission game. However, Font also has a clear ceiling, particularly when it comes to dealing with similarly aggressive fighters who can put him in danger. Against Pedro Munhoz and in his first fight against Lineker, Font grew more and more content to cede pressure and make his own game ineffective. Font has still managed to get some impressive victories over the likes of Douglas Silva de Andrade, Thomas Almeida and Sergio Pettis, and the UFC seems to like him enough to keep giving him chances at a breakthrough win. A victory here against Lineker would certainly qualify.
Lineker has slowed a bit, but not a ton has changed from the dynamic of their first fight. Font has the reach and the skill to peck away at Lineker in a way similar to Sandhagen, but that is not the way he fights, so this figures to look a lot like the first bout, with Font charging in and getting scared off by Lineker’s power more and more as the fight goes on. It should be fun as it goes on, but a Font win would either require the best strategic performance of his career or Lineker to suddenly start falling apart. The pick is Lineker via decision.
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