LAS VEGAS — Rob Font will make the walk into the bright lights of the T-Mobile Arena octagon for the most important fight of his UFC career Saturday night, but you wouldn’t know it if you spent any time with the Boston-based bantamweight.
Font, who will fight No. 3-ranked UFC bantamweight contender Raphael Assuncao on Saturday night at UFC 226, will have a chance to position himself for a potential title shot with a strong performance against one of the best in the division.
But Font’s cool, calm and collected personality makes it seem like he’s in Vegas to support a teammate, rather than actually fight.
While most fighters stress during weight cuts, Font plays the video game Pac-Man in his hotel room.
On his way to Las Vegas, he even almost missed his flight.
“(My girlfriend) and I didn’t even know there’s like a 45-minute rule before you get there for your bags to be checked in. I didn’t even know that. I found out that day. So she said, ‘Listen, you just go, I’ll take the bags and jump on the next plane.”
Font still wasn’t stressed out during the whole ordeal — except maybe over the confiscation of some condiments he had in his carry-on.
“They kept my hot sauce, they kept my guac. I was like ‘Whatever, you guys can keep it.’ At the time, (Font’s teammate and fellow Boston native) Calvin Kattar was out there and they took his speaker. So he’s arguing with them and right when they let us go, we just booked it. It was a 40-yard sprint and we barely made it. But it was fun, man, it was fun. It was exciting. The whole time I’m screaming, ‘Fight week! Fight week!’”
Font’s laid-back attitude doesn’t stop there. Throughout training, Font and his teammates have rallied around a robin, who became friendly with Font’s teammate Kattar while he was on a lunch break last month.
“This bird just jumped on him,” Font said. “He just followed him through. So he took him home, bought him a cage, bought him some food, the bird went number two on him a couple times. So he jumped in the shower and the bird just followed and jumped in the shower with him.
“We definitely have the robin on our minds at all times. Shout out to the robin. We miss you.”
Font is extremely likable outside the octagon because of his chill personality, and this appears to have translated well inside the octagon. His explosive style of fighting has led to seven consecutive stoppages in his last seven wins and others have taken notice.
“I like his style,” Font’s UFC 226 opponent Assuncao said. “A little boxing style. Kind of a f— it (style). You know like, loose style.”
Font will hope his “loose” and “f— it” style and attitude that he exemplifies on a day-to-day basis will prevail in the octagon and perhaps get him noticed for a title shot against the winner of the bantamweight title fight next month between T.J. Dillashaw and Cody Garbrandt.
