Arnold Allen Looking At UFC 297 As Chance To Reintroduce Himself
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Arnold Allen on UFC 297: “A win here gets me back in the title picture”
How quickly we forget.
Up until the evening of this past April 15, Arnold Allen was viewed as a future kingpin of the UFC featherweight division. After ripping off a dozen wins in a row, and he looked to knock off Max Holloway at a UFC Fight Night in Kansas City. With that victory, Allen would have climbed into a position to fight for the title.
Courtesy Zuffa LLC
Then Holloway, who had been pounced on by Alexander Volkanovski in his prior fight, returned to elite form. Though Allen’s speed and power caused problems, Holloway dictated the pace and space throughout the majority of the five rounds, and his patient approach paid dividends.
“You’re only as good as your last fight,” said Allen. “People only remember that I lost.”
Holloway’s body kicks played a significant factor. He slid out of Allen’s range until late the fourth and the fifth, and even when Allen was at his best, Holloway still outlanded him. This was the first time Allen entered the fifth round of a fight. He attempted to make up for it by employing an extremely aggressive approach in the final five minutes–a strategy that should have been employed much sooner–but the damage was done.
“In the moment, I knew I messed up,” said Allen. “I felt like, when I pushed the pace, I was doing better. The game plan wasn’t working. Being the veteran he is, he fought a way he doesn’t usually fight.”
Courtesy Zuffa LLC
Holloway won the bout by unanimous decision. He also won his next fight, defeating the Korean Zombie, and now finds himself in a must-see bout against Justin Gaethje at UFC 300. But Allen is the odd man out of the title picture, now being served up to the undefeated Movsar Evloev on his inevitable path to the title.
Sound familiar?
The narrative for Evloev is the same as it once was for Allen. Evloev (17-0) is a force in the cage, yet he has not defeated the same caliber of opponents that Allen has, making this his greatest test to date.
“MMA is a short-minded sport,” said Allen (19-2). “You can dominate, get beat, and you’ll hear people say you’re finished. Before I fought Max, people kept telling me, ‘Max is done.’ I refused to enter with that mindset or approach. Obviously, he’s far from done–he got the win then knocked out Korean Zombie. Now he’s fighting Justin Gaethje at UFC 300. People have short memories in MMA.
“So when they offered this fight against Evloev, I was excited to fight a tough, undefeated guy. He’s being hyped up as the next champion. He has a tricky style to navigate, but I want to show my full arsenal against him.”
Despite the obstacle in front of him, Allen is ready to make an emphatic statement at UFC 297–taking away Evloev’s zero and reinserting himself back into the division’s elite.
“A win here gets me back in the title picture,” said Allen. “If I win here, I’ll fight another contender, which I’m looking forward to doing. It’s a big opportunity, and I’m not looking past it.”
Justin Gaethje-Max Holloway bout will be centerpiece of UFC 300
There is nothing for Max Holloway to lose at UFC 300, and everything for Justin Gaethje to gain.
Gaethje defends his ceremonial BMF title against Holloway this April at UFC 300. The bout will be fought at lightweight, so Holloway is moving up from featherweight, making Gaethje the instant favorite.
Courtesy Zuffa LLC
Outside of lightweight champ Islam Makhachev, this is the best possible opponent for Gaethje. Holloway holds legitimate prestige in the sport, and a victory against him–regardless of division–holds massive weight.
If Gaethje wins this bout, there is no doubt that his next bout will be one where he is challenging for the undisputed lightweight title.
