Rob Font is slightly favored against Ricky Simon at UFC on ESPN 7 Saturday, December 7 in Washington D.C. This event is one of six fights on the main card on ESPN. Font is 16-4 in his career, while Simon is 15-2 in his career. There are a total of six fights on the main card on ESPN at UFC on ESPN 7, with the headliner a bout between Alistair Overeem and Jairzinho Rozenstruik. There are also a total of six fights on the preliminary card, with four on ESPN and two on ESPN+. Let’s look at the bout between Font and Simon and UFC predictions.
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Rob Font (16-4, 6-3 UFC)
Font came into the UFC with a record of 10-1 and he has six wins and three losses in the UFC. He defeated George Roop by KO, Joey Gomez by TKO, Matt Schnell by KO, Douglas Silva de Andrade by guillotine choke submission, Thomas Almeida by TKO, and Sergio Pettis by unanimous decision; while losing to John Lineker by unanimous decision, Pedro Munhoz by guillotine choke submission and Raphael Assunção by unanimous decision. Font has been a pro since 2011 and he has seven wins by TKO/KO and four by submission. He has seven first round finishes.
Ricky Simon (15-2, 3-1 UFC)
Simon came into the UFC with a record of 12-1 and he has three wins and one loss in the UFC. He defeated Merab Dvalishvili by technical submission, Montel Jackson by unanimous decision, and Rani Yahya; while losing to Urijah Faber by TKO. Simon has been a pro since 2014 and he has five wins by TKO/KO and two by submission. He has six first round finishes.
Simon said this to mmaweekly.com about his upcoming fight against Font, I don’t think of myself as just a wrestler, but this is kind of a match-up of a striker versus of a grappler, and it’s an exciting one because we both like to throw down. I wanted this fight because (Font’s) a top ranked guy and he brings it every time. I’m very excited about the match-up, and I think I have what it takes to get him out of there. “I definitely set goals and my first year in the UFC I wanted to break into the Top 15, and this year I wanted to get into the Top 10, and even with this bump in the road with my last fight, I’m still on track to hit my goal with a win over Rob Font.”
Simon also said this to mmanews.com. “Font is very well-rounded; he has submissions and knockouts and totally controlled Sergio in his last fight. But, I’m a different beast than Sergio Pettis. I have better wrestling and I think that is what is going to dictate this fight as I’m going to be able to keep it where I want it. Rob’s great but I’m totally confident in my abilities as well, I think I’m going to get it done. It is going to be interesting with the way he throws his straight punches and mixes up his striking. But, ultimately, I’m going to be able to dictate where the fight goes and put the pressure on him. That is going to be the story of the night that there is too much pressure.”
Striking Stats
Strikes landed per minute: Font 4.94 / Simon 2.72
Striking Accuracy: Font 40% / Simon 41%
Strikes absorbed per minute: Font 3.88/ Simon 3.24
Defense: Font 63% / Simon 68%
Grappling Stats
Takedown average: Font 1.29/ Simon 6.66
Takedown Accuracy: Font 33% / Simon 52%
Takedowns defended: Font 30% / Simon 73%
Submission average: Font 0.9 / Simon 0.2
UFC Predictions
Font is slightly favored at -150 and is a very well rounded fighter who can win in a variety of ways. I think the price is actually a bit low considering Font’s previous success and his overall skill level. I am going to take the favored Font to get the win by knockout and have the rounds go under the total.
Main Card (ESPN)
Heavyweight - Alistair Overeem -125 vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik
Women's Strawweight - Marina Rodriguez -140 vs. Cynthia Calvillo
Heavyweight - Ben Rothwell -145 vs. Stefan Struve
Women's Bantamweight - Aspen Ladd -155 vs. Yana Kunitskaya
Bantamweight - Song Yadong -200 vs. Cody Stamann
Bantamweight - Rob Font -150 vs. Ricky Simon
Preliminary Card (ESPN)
Lightweight - Joe Solecki -335 vs. Matt Wiman
Featherweight - Billy Quarantillo -330 vs. Jacob Kilburn
Welterweight - Tim Means -260 vs. Thiago Alves
Featherweight - Matt Sayles -125 vs. Bryce Mitchell
Early Preliminary Card (ESPN+)
Women's Strawweight - Virna Jandiroba -280 vs. Mallory Martin
Middleweight - Makhmud Muradov -415 vs. Trevor Smith
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