UFC Vegas 53 Bonuses: Marlon Vera and Rob Font earn Fight of the Night honors
UFC officials announced the recipients of the $50,000 performance-based bonuses stemming from Saturday’s UFC Vegas 53 event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Fight Of The Night: Marlon Vera vs Rob Font*
In a crucial battle in the vaunted bantamweight division, Rob Font and Marlon “Chito” Vera duked it out for five rounds, and the Ecuadorian did enough to earn the decision win, likely setting him up for a top-5 matchup next.
To start the fight, Font peppered Vera with his patented jab, but Vera cashed some leg kicks in early to try slow down his opponent. Vera nearly matched Font’s output to stem the momentum built heading into the second round. The second and third round saw more of Font’s pace and volume, but at the end of each frame, Vera dropped Font to the canvas. First, with a sneaky left hook and then a slick knee to end the second and third frame on top, respectively. Font battled in the fourth round, but Vera turned on the aggression and looked for the finish. Font thwarted him and landed some heat, but “Chito” remained unbothered. Vera dropped Font again midway through the fourth round, but Font survived. Font came out heavy early and often, but once again, Vera rocked the New Englander, but the horn sounded before the finish came.
Marlon Vera batters Rob Font in UFC Vegas 53 main event
Performance Of The Night: Joanderson Brito
It took Francisco Figueiredo all of 78 seconds to earn a submission win over Daniel da Silva. After landing a body kick, Figueiredo found himself getting taken down but used the opportunity to scramble. In doing so, he locked up a kneebar, and quickly forced his opponent to tap.
Performance Of The Night: Francisco Figueiredo
Facing well-respected veteran Andre Fili, Joanderson Brito made a huge statement in earning a first-round TKO. Right away, the two got after it, and Brito landed a massive overhand right hand that spun Fili to the ground. Brito followed up well and earned the stoppage inside the first minute of the fight.