Prelim Breakout Stars: Rob Font & Derrick Lewis

(David Manning-USA TODAY Sports)

The Prelim Breakout Star is a once per event article that helps fans get to know those who will be entertaining them from the undercard. The intention of the article is not to bring attention to the most talented guy on the preliminary card, but rather one that the common fan may have overlooked or underestimated.

Fresh off of a pair of cards where we highlighted a pair of jiu jitsu aces, we look to a different type of fighter this time. While neither of these guys are strangers to the ground game, they are much more likely to dazzle the fans by standing and banging. With appropriately timed fireworks nearly guaranteed, here are two guys fans are not going to want to miss this weekend.

Rob Font

Affiliation – Team Sityodtong
From – Boston, Massachusetts
Height – 5’8”
Weight – 135 lbs (Bantamweight)
Record – 10-1 (0-0 UFC)

Derrick Lewis

Nickname – The Black Beast
Affiliation – Silverback Fight Club
From – Houston, Texas
Height – 6’3”
Weight – 256 lbs (Heavyweight)
Record – 10-2 (1-0 UFC)

What makes them impressive

As previously mentioned, both of these guys carry explosives in their hands. Lewis rarely wins a fight without a knockout, and although Font has quite a few more wins by other methods, plenty of those other wins contain instances of stunning his opponent with his hands. However, the most impressive thing about these heavy-handed pugilists is that they have also shown the ability to wrestle. Font has been known to use it at the end of round to sway the judges, while Lewis has used it to unleash some brutal ground and pound. Lewis also uses his wrestling defensively, as seen in his bout with Jared Rosholt. While Rosholt, an impressive wrestler, got him down a few times, attempting one too many times got him shucked and KO’d.

Why they have been overlooked

The reason people have not swarmed to Font is quite easy. Training out of Sityodtong in Boston, Font has frequented the Northeast fighting circuit. While the South has Legacy FC for a large promotion and the West has RFA, the Northeast has yet to develop a budding promotion. Perhaps the closest thing the area has is CES, to which Font is a six-time veteran and champion. Although the promotion did not generate quite as much hype as the aforementioned promotions did for the likes of Kevin Casey and Bubba Bush, who are both also on this card.

Lewis, on the other hand, has really no reason to be without followers. His constant KO power and quick finishes usually bring hype. However, he has often drawn criticism for his cardio. With many fans thinking that he couldn’t last in a full length fight, they don’t believe he is the real thing.

What makes these are good matchups

George Roop possesses something that most bantamweights do not. At 6’1” he has length and reach that most in the division have never seen. Yet Font does not fit that “most”. He has been groomed to fight someone similar to Roop for the past couple years. Half of his opponents from the past two calendar years have all been 5’11” or above and in these fights he’s shown that he can close that distance and still get the knockout.

Guto Inocente has a very solid submission and ground game. But he is a former light heavyweight. With Lewis being such a massive heavyweight, it may be hard to get him to the ground. And if Inocente can’t get him to the ground, he is likely going to pay for it on his feet the same way Rosholt and others before him did.

Prelim Breakout Star History:

Record: 36 Wins, 18 Losses, 2 Did Not Fight (DNF)

1. Francisco Trinaldo – UFC on FX: Belfort vs Bisping (W)

2. Simeon Thoresen – UFC on Fox: Johnson vs Dodson (L)

3. Tyron Woodley – UFC 156 (W)

4. Vaughan Lee – UFC on Fuel: Barao vs McDonald (W)

5. Dennis Bermudez – UFC 157 (W)

6. Cristiano Marcello – UFC on Fuel: Stann vs Silva (L)

7. Daron Cruickshank – UFC 158 (L)

8. Ryan LaFlare – UFC on Fuel: Mousasi vs Latifi (W)

9. Bart Palaszewski – TUF Finale (L)

10. Yoel Romero – UFC on Fox: Henderson vs Melendez (W)

11. Rustam Khabilov – UFC 159 (W)

12. Fabio Maldonado – UFC on FX: Belfort vs Rockhold (W)

13. Khabib Nurmagomedov – UFC 160 (W)

14. Antonio Braga Neto – UFC on Fuel: Nogueira vs Werdum (W)

15. Roland Delorme – UFC 161 (W)

16. Seth Baczynski – UFC 162 (L)

17. Jorge Masvidal – UFC on Fox: Johnson vs Moraga (W)

18. Ednaldo Oliveira – UFC 163 (L)

19. Mike Brown – UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs Sonnen (L)

20. Dylan Andrews – UFC Fight Night: Condit vs Kampmann (W)

21. Soa Palelei – UFC 164 (W)

22. Elias Silverio – UFC Fight Night: Teixeira vs Bader (W)

23. John Makdessi – UFC 165 (W)

24. Alan Patrick – UFC Fight Night: Maia vs Shields (W)

25. Andre Fili – UFC 166 (W)

26. Jimy Hettes – UFC Fight Night: Machida vs Munoz (W)

27. Germaine de Randamie – UFC Fight for the Troops 3 (L)

28. Omari Akhmedov – UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs Henderson (W)

29. Sergio Pettis – UFC 167 (W)

30. Roxanne Modafferi – TUF Finale (L)

31. Takeya Mizugaki – UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs Bigfoot (W)

32. Alptekin Ozkilic – UFC on Fox: Johnson vs Benavidez (W)

33. Siyar Bahadurzada – UFC 168 (L)

34. Mairbek Taisumov – UFC Fight Night: Saffiedine vs Lim (W)

35. Charlie Brenneman – UFC Fight Night: Rockhold vs Philippou (L)

36. Walt Harris – UFC on Fox: Henderson vs Thompson (L)

37. Clint Hester – UFC 169 (W)

38. Joe Proctor – UFC Fight Night: Machida vs Mousasi (W)

39. Aljamain Sterling – UFC 170 (W)

40. Zak Cummings – TUF China Finale (DNF)

41. Cyrille Diabate – UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs Manuwa (L)

42. Mats Nilsson – UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs Manuwa (L)

43. Alex Garcia – UFC 171 (W)

44. Hans Stringer – UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs Henderson (W)

45. Jim Alers – UFC Fight Night: Nogueira vs Nelson (W)

46. Ryan Jimmo – TUF Finale (W)

47. Caio Magalhaes – UFC on Fox: Werdum vs Browne (W)

48. Joe Ellenberger – UFC 172 (DNF)

49. Kyoji Horiguchi – UFC Fight Night: Brown vs Silva (W)

50. Francisco Trinaldo – UFC 173 (L)

51. Iuri Alcantara – UFC FIght Night: Mousasi vs Munoz (W)

52. Paulo Thiago – TUF Brazil Finale (L)

53. Jon Tuck – UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs Khabilov (W)

54. Mike Easton – UFC 174 (L)

55. Ian Entwistle – UFC Fight Night: Marquardt vs Te Huna (L)

56. Ray Borg – UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs Stevens (W)