MMA Junkie fight analyst Dan Tom takes a closer look at the UFC on ESPN 50 headliner between Cory Sandhagen and Rob Font.
After an interim bantamweight title loss to Petr Yan in 2021, Sandhagen (16-4 MMA, 9-3 UFC) has bounced back with a TKO of Song Yadong in 2022 and a split decision over Marlon Vera in March. The 31-year-old takes on late replacement Font (20-6 MMA, 10-5 UFC), who stepped in for Umar Nurmagomedov. Because Font took the assignment so late, the fight will be at a 140-pound contract weight. A win for Sandhagen would give him his first streak of three or more fights since 2019.
After a modest four-fight winning streak against some serious names – current Bellator flyweight champion Sergio Pettis, former LFA champ Ricky Simon, ex-WSOF titleholder Marlon Moraes and former UFC champ Cody Garbrandt – Font dropped back-to-back fights to Jose Aldo and Marlon Vera. But in April, the 36-year-old returned after nearly a year off and took out Adrian Yanez for a first-round TKO and post-fight bonus. The short-notice headliner will be Font’s fourth main event in five fights.
MMA Junkie fight analyst Dan Tom has studied the film to offer his thoughts and prediction on the matchup, which you can watch in the video above.
UFC on ESPN 50 takes place Saturday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. The card airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 50.
