Top 5: Rob Font Knockouts

Rob Font specializes in controlled violence.

The ex-CES MMA titleholder strengthened his presence in the Ultimate Fighting Championship when he cut down American Top Team’s Marlon Moraes with punches in the first round of their UFC Fight Night 183 bantamweight showcase on Dec. 19, 2020 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Providing support for the Stephen Thompson-Geoff Neal main event, Font drew the curtain 3:47 into Round 1.


Moraes surprised the New England Cartel linchpin with two early takedowns and an attempted guillotine choke, but the former World Series of Fighting champion failed to consolidate his efforts with positional control or ground-and-pound. Back on his feet, Font went to work. A stiff jab drove Moraes backward, and a right uppercut marked the beginning of the end. The Brazilian staggered and collapsed, at which point he was met with a hellacious barrage of punches and hammerfists. Referee Marc Goddard gave Moraes every chance to recover, but his counterpart offered no such refuge.

As Font pushes closer to his looming UFC 326 confrontation with Raul Rosas Jr. this Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, his finish against Moraes still ranks as one of his memorable knockouts. Four others to consider:

Rob Font vs. George Roop

UFC 175
July 5, 2014 | Las Vegas
Font punched out “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 8 semifinalist in the first round of their bantamweight prelim at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. Font polished off his 10th straight win 2:19 into Round 1. The 6-foot-1 Roop lured the promotional newcomer into the clinch and pecked away with punches to the head and kicks to the legs. Font fired his right hand through the Arizonan’s guard a little less than midway through the first round and folded him where he stood. He then pounced with punches for the finish, forcing referee Chris Tognoni to intervene on Roop’s behalf.

Rob Font vs. Matt Schnell

“The Ultimate Fighter 24” Finale
Dec. 3, 2016 | Las Vegas
Font blew away the American Top Team export with punches in the first round of their bantamweight prelim at the Palms Casino Resort. A late replacement for Alejandro Perez, Schnell succumbed to blows 3:47 into Round 1. Font had the former Legacy Fighting Championship titleholder reeling on more than one occasion, first with a front kick to the face and later with a knee strike upstairs. The knee sent Schnell crashing to the canvas, where he was met with heavy ground-and-pound. Font stepped up his assault from there. Schnell—who entered the cage on a six-fight winning streak—went face down in a final act of desperation, only to be punched unconscious.

Rob Font vs. Thomas Almeida

UFC 220
Jan. 20, 2018 | Boston
Font wiped out the Brazilian with a head kick and follow-up punches in the second round of their bantamweight attraction at TD Garden. Almeida checked out 2:24 into Round 2. Font was the aggressor from the outset. He pressured the Chute Boxe standout with power punches and fed him a steady jab throughout the first round. Almeida started to turn the tide late in the frame but saw his momentum stymied by a chopping right hand in the second. The impact sent him careening backward, and he never fully recovered. Font stayed busy and had him reeling again with a pair of right uppercuts before blasting him with a head kick along the fence. More uppercuts deposited Almeida on the mat, where hammerfists from the Mark DellaGrotte protégé sealed the deal.

Rob Font vs. Adrian Yanez

UFC 287
April 8, 2023 | Miami
Font dismissed the Metro Fight Club product with punches in the first round of their bantamweight feature at the Kaseya Center. Yanez, who had never before been finished, clocked out 2:57 into Round 1. Font leaned into his trusted jab from the start but encountered an opponent who was more than willing to return fire. Yanez’s right hand was effective in spurts and resulted in visible damage to the Massachusetts native’s face. However, Font turned the corner when he dazed the Texan with a close-quarters uppercut. He later floored Yanez with a shovel uppercut, pursued him to the canvas and buried him with an avalanche of punches that necessitated the stoppage.