Aljamain Sterling doesn’t like Deiveson Figueiredo’s chances in his bantamweight debut.
Former flyweight champion Figueiredo (21-3-1 MMA, 10-3-1 UFC) meets Rob Font (20-7 MMA, 10-6 UFC) in a 135-pound clash Dec. 2 at a UFC Fight Night event.
Font is going to have a significant height and reach advantage on Figueiredo, which former UFC bantamweight champion Sterling thinks will lead to Figueiredo’s demise.
“I think Rob Font is going to shut the lights of Figueiredo,” Sterling said on his YouTube channel. “I think Figueiredo’s going to be a little bit too small,. even standing next to him in person. Figueiredo’s going to have the speed advantage.
“But I think once Font closes the distance – with his teeps, his long push kicks, and then uses that long jab, cuts off the cage where he’s kind of creeping towards you, long jab, and he creeps … boom … creeps again, stays in front of you – I think he’s going to be able to find those big hooks that he throws. Boom: Uppercut, and I think that’s going to be the fight. Figueiredo, obviously a former world champion, I think he’s going to make it interesting, but I still think the size is going to play a factor.”
Figueiredo is coming off a flyweight title loss to Brandon Moreno at UFC 283 in January. Font will also look to rebound after suffering a lopsided decision loss to Cory Sandhagen in August, when he was heavily outgrappled for five rounds.
