CES MMA champ Font makes UFC debut Saturday

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (July 3^rd, 2014) – When Rob Font received a phone call one morning from his head trainer, Mark DellaGrotte, asking if he happened to be sitting down at the moment, Font wasn’t sure what to expect.

“I figured it was either going to be really good or really bad,” Font recalled.

It was the best news of the his life, the call all aspiring mixed martial arts fighters wait for, an invitation to compete in the Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC).

“Why be in this sport if you’re not trying to get to the UFC? It’s not something you play with,” said Font, the Tampa, Fla., native who now lives and trains out of Boston.

Now that Font (10-1, 3 KOs) has had to time to let it all sink in, make his rounds within the local media circuit and shed the extra 15 or so pounds to move from featherweight to bantamweight, the reigning CES MMA champ is finally in Las Vegas decompressing before he makes his UFC debut Saturday night at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on the undercard of UFC 175 against George Roop (15-10-1, 4 KOs).

Prior to getting the call from the UFC, Font dominated the northeast at 145 pounds, winning nine consecutive fights, six under the promotional guidance of CES MMA. Now he’ll fight at 130 against the 32-year-old Roop, an eight-time UFC vet with a 4-4 record on the big stage and victories in three of his last four fights.

Roop earned his stripes on the eighth season of the popular reality television series, The Ultimate Fighter, and parlayed his success into undercard bouts at UFC 137, UFC 158 and UFC 160. He also competed for the now-defunct World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC), where he beat future UFC title contender Chan Sung Jung, and also defeated former WEC bantamweight champion Brian Bowles at UFC 160.

At this stage, every fight is difficult, so Font is making sure he’s equally prepared mentally, specifically trying to avoid the pre-fight jitters that tend to plague UFC rookies the first time they step inside the octagon. Regional standout Tom Egan, a native of Ireland, admitted the butterflies affected him when he made his UFC debut at UFC 93 in Ireland as the only Irish fighter on the card.

“Honestly, I’m trying not to expect anything,” Font said. “People always talk about the UFC jitters, but I hope it’s not true. I’m expecting it to be another day in the gym, but you never know. The lights are brighter, there are tons of cameras, you see [UFC color commentator] Joe Rogan. It can be overwhelming, but it’s just another fight.”

Having DellaGrotte in his corner is a huge advantage. A former professional Muay Thai kickboxer, DellaGrotte owns the Boston branch of Sityodtong, where Font honed his skills, and has trained several UFC standouts, including Frank Mir, Jorge Rivera, Kenny Florian, Stephan Bonnar and Marcus Davis.

“This is nothing new to him,” Font said. “He’s always kept me level-headed. He knew I put the work in and that it was just a matter of time. He would always pull me to the side and tell me I have what it takes and that I just had do it, so I’ve always trusted him.

“We did everything we had to do. Hard work pays off, and now we’re here.”

Roop’s experience won’t be the only intangible Font has to be wary of. Speed will be a factor, too. Fighting at a lighter weight than usual, Font fully expects Roop to be faster than some of the opponents he’s faced in recent years. The weight-cut itself was a breeze thanks in large part to DellaGrotte’s guidance.

“Right after my last fight, my managers told me to enjoy it, but not party too hard because you never know when you’ll get that call,” Font said. “We did it right. We got a nutritionist on board. I’m finally eating like an adult. Lots of spinach, kale. I’m as light as I’ve ever been. I can handle everything as far as the wrestling and scrambling is concerned, but the big thing is dealing with the speed.”

There’s also the pressure of making sure he not only wins, but also looks sharp in the process. UFC fighters tend to be expendable. Even those who win might end up one-and-done if they don’t do enough inside the cage to pique the viewers’ interest. Font’s made it clear his goal isn’t just to get to the big stage, but to be a fixture for years to come.

“Your job is pretty much on the line every time you fight,” Font said. “You not only have to win, but you have to perform. You’ve got to be exciting. You have to be someone everyone else is talking about the next day. If you’re not that guy, what do they need you for?

“It definitely plays into your nerves, but I’ve always done well with that. I just need to go in there and do what I need to do. It’s great getting a lot of attention now, but I know I have to stay in there and get the job done. It’s one thing to get there, but it’s a whole different animal to stay there and be a household name. That’s my next goal.”

Font is now the second fighter from the northeast to jump directly from CES MMA to the UFC. Boston’s John “Doomsday” Howard, who spent two years with the UFC before the company released him in 2011, bounced back with five consecutive wins under CES MMA’s guidance to earn a return trip to the octagon. CES MMA will continue to break new ground in August when it’s “CES MMA XXV” event airs live on AXS TV, the home of Inside MMA.

“Going back to 2010, before I was even fighting as an amateur, I went to a CES show with [teammate] Tyson [Chartier] and said to him, ‘Hey, man, I would love to fight for this promotion,’” Font recalled. “It was always in the back of my mind that I wanted to fight for CES, especially with how they helped ‘Doomsday.’

“When they finally got me on a card, I knew I didn’t want to fight for anyone else. They have all the top fighters, and it’s an all-pro card, 10 to 11 solid fights, not two pro fights and then a thousand amateur fights. Now with AXS TV, it’s a huge platform. If you’re an up-and-coming amateur, you should definitely consider fighting for CES.”

UFC 175 features the middleweight main event between reigning champion Chris Weidman and former light heavyweight champ Lyoto Machida. The preliminary card, featuring Font’s bout against Roop, will air live on FOX Sports 1 beginning at 8 p.m. ET. Early prelims are available beginning at 7 through UFC Fight Pass on www.ufc.com while the main card begins live at 10 on Pay Per View.

For more information on Font and all of CES MMA’s upcoming events, visit www.cesmma.com, follow CES MMA on Twitter at @CESMMA and Instagram at CESMMA, or “like” CES MMA on Facebook by clicking the corresponding link.