Font-Figueiredo, Rountree-Murzakanov Booked for Dec. 2 UFC Card

Contender Series alum Azamat Murzakanov, who is now 3-0 in the UFC and ranked No. 12 at LHW, will face No. 11 Khalil Rountree on Dec. 2 per sources. Rountree on a four-fight win streak.

— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) September 22, 2023

Even without a location on the books, the Ultimate Fighting Championship is building up its first December card in a big way.

On Friday, two high-stakes matchups at 135 and 205 pounds were announced by various outlets. Courtesy of MMA Fighting, and confirmed by other outlets, Rob Font (20-7) will be welcoming former flyweight king Deiveson Figueiredo (21-3-1) up to 135 pounds on Dec. 2. The untitled UFC Fight Night event on that date does not have a headliner or a specific location yet, although rumored venues include the Target Center in Minneapolis and the 3Arena in Dublin.

While still a top-10 name in the talent-rich bantamweight division, Boston-based Font has fallen on hard times as of late, having dropped three of his last four. In late 2021, Jose Aldo snapped Font’s four-fight win streak that included victories over Cody Garbrandt and Sergio Pettis. A subsequent outing against Marlon Vera did not go Font’s way in his lone trip to the cage in 2022. This year Font did bounce back from those defeats by sparking Adrian Yanez in under three rounds, but a five-round headliner in August saw Font fall short against Cory Sandhagen.

Like his foe, Figueiredo only celebrates one win over the last couple years. “Daico” completed the first immediate tetralogy in UFC history when he battled Brandon Moreno four consecutive times from 2020 to 2023. When the dust settled, Figueiredo had lost two of the four outings, along with their 2020 draw, to end it in Moreno’s favor. Along the way, the 35-year-old – who repeatedly stated that his weight cut to flyweight had been more challenging as he aged – suffered his only two stoppage losses. This fight against Font will be the Brazilian’s first at bantamweight.

Additionally, the UFC’s broadcast partner of ESPN broke the news that a big light heavyweight scrap would be on deck for this Fight Night event. Both on the outside of the UFC’s 205-pound top 10 looking in, Khalil Rountree (12-5) will square off against Azamat Murzakanov (13-0) on the same billing.

Rountree has currently tied the longest win streak of his career by winning his last four bouts. About two years ago, Rountree righted the ship by stopping Modestas Bukauskas with a vicious leg kick. The 2022 campaign for “The War Horse” went swimmingly, as a body kick knockout of Karl Roberson started the year off strong, and he concluded it by claiming a split decision over top-ranked Dustin Jacoby. This past August, Rountree put away former heavyweight Chris Daukaus in under three minutes, and knockouts account for two-thirds of Rountree’s career victories.

Unbeaten as a professional, Murzakanov claimed his place on the roster in 2021 by wrecking Matheus Scheffel in exactly three minutes on Dana White's Contender Series. Since then, the Russian dispatched Tafon Nchukwi and Devin Clark in 2022 via third-round knockouts. In April, Murzakanov faced the aforementioned Jacoby, only to claim a unanimous verdict over the ex-kickboxer. “The Professional” sports a finish rate of 77% as a professional.