Rob Font would’ve been competing for interim gold but COVID-19 got in the way.
Font was in prime position to take on Petr Yan for the interim UFC Bantamweight Championship when Aljamain Sterling pulled out due to lingering neck issues. After contracting COVID-19, however, Font wasn’t going to be able to fight at 100 percent on Oct. 30. That opportunity will now be going to Cory Sandhagen.
Rob Font Talks Missing Out On Title Fight
During an interview with James Lynch for Middle Easy, Font discussed when he got COVID-19 and being forced to turn down a shot at interim gold.
“Yeah, man. Unfortunately, obviously, we got the call but I just got off the whole COVID situation, so I couldn’t jump into that fight. Things happen for a reason, should’ve never went to Texas [laughs].
“It was maybe a month ago I think. So like a month ago and then I was out not training for like three weeks or two and a half weeks. And then the day I came back and was able to kind of even leave the house we get the call. I was like, ‘I don’t know if I can do this man.’ We tried to push it a couple of dates back but they needed the fight to be out there.”
Rob Font Was Offered Interim Title Fight Before Sandhagen
Font went on to say that the choices for an interim title opportunity were narrowed down to him and Sandhagen. Ultimately, Font got the call first.
“From my understanding, it was just kind of me and Sandhagen. That’s pretty cool. They pretty much said, ‘hey, we’re gonna see if you wanna do it but we’re also offering it to Sandhagen as well. So it was unfortunate we had to turn it down but it was pretty cool we got the offer. It kind of sucked because we weren’t sure if it was gonna be for the title or for the interim. But once we found out it was the interim, it was like, ‘alright it’s not the worst.'”
Was Font Considered To Be Emergency Replacement?
Had Font remained healthy, many wondered if the UFC had him on standby as an emergency option for the UFC Bantamweight Title fight before Sterling got hurt. Rob Font cleared the air.
“Not necessarily from the UFC, but Tyson [Chartier] was kind of whispering that in my ear. But there was nothing official. The UFC never reached out to us.”
The good news for Font is that he’ll be getting a major fight on Dec. 4. He’ll share the Octagon with future UFC Hall of Famer Jose Aldo.
