Brendan Allen continued his impressive form by overwhelming Paul Craig in the middleweight main event of a UFC Fight Night at the APEX Facility in Las Vegas on the morning of Sunday 19 November 2023.
Allen and Craig put up two rounds of excellent fighting, with dynamic submission attempts from both men, but early in the third ‘All In’ rocked his Scottish opponent with a combination of strikes before sinking in his signature rear-naked choke and securing a submission triumph.
It is a fourth successive triumph via the rear-naked choke for Allen – and a fifth from his run of six straight wins.
The 27-year-old American is determined to rise up the division rankings and challenge for the strap: “I'm trying to fight man. I want the No 1 contender," Allen said during his post-fight interview.
"I'm the best in the world and I'm here to prove it. If you say otherwise come show me, don't tell me.
"I'm not even in my prime yet. I'm coming and I'm a f***ing problem.”
The rest of the main card saw Michael Morales defeat Jake Matthews via unanimous decision in the welterweight division; Chase Hooper submitted Jordan Leavitt in a lightweight clash; Payton Talbott got the better of Nick Aguirre in a bantamweight bout; Amanda Ribas had a spectacular TKO triumph over Luana Pinheiro in a women’s strawweight match; and Myktybek Orolbai submitted Uros Medic in a welterweight opener.
The next UFC event is a Fight Night in Austin, Texas, on the morning of Sunday 3 December 2023, headlined by a lightweight clash between Beneil Dariush and Arman Tsarukyan.
UFC Fight Night: Allen v Craig – Main card results
- Main event: Middleweight: Brendan Allen def. Paul Craig via submission (rear-naked choke), R3, 0:28
- Welterweight: Michael Morales def. Jake Matthews via unanimous decision (30-27 29-28 29-28), R3, 5:00
- Lightweight: Chase Hooper def. Jordan Leavitt via submission (rear-naked choke), R1, 2:58
- Bantamweight: Payton Talbott def. Nick Aguirre via submission (rear-naked choke), R3, 0:58
- Women’s strawweight: Amanda Ribas def. Luana Pinheiro via TKO (kicks and punches), R3, 3:53
- Welterweight: Myktybek Orolbai def. Uros Medic via submission (neck crank), R2, 4:12