Allen looks to claim major scalp

Arnold Allen will look to claim the biggest scalp of his MMA career to date when he faces Max Holloway in the featherweight main event of a Fight Night at the T-Mobile Centre in Kansas City, Missouri, on the morning of Sunday 16 April 2023.

Allen (19-1) has racked up a 12-fight win streak. His most recent victory was something of hollow triumph over Calvin Kattar (who suffered a serious knee injury and succumbed early in the second round) in October 2022, but he has enjoyed emphatic wins over Dan Hooker, Sodiq Yusuff and Nik Lentz since 2020.

The 29-year-old ‘Almighty’ believes the wear and tear on his veteran opponent could be a deciding factor: “He's Max Holloway, he's great. [But] his mileage is gonna catch up,” said Allen.

“It doesn't matter how old you are if you have 20 fights where every fight is a back-and-forth, 50-50 war. Even when he's been very dominant, he's taken a lot of shots. So yeah, the miles have got to add up.

“I've always loved watching Max. Who hasn't? He's fun to watch. He seems like a top bloke. Not when he fights though. He's an a**hole when he fights. He hits you, he's shaking his hand and mocking you. You need to be aware of that. He's a nice guy outside of the cage, but in there, no.”

Holloway (23-7) was last in action at UFC 276 in July last year, suffering a unanimous decision loss to division king Alexander Volkanovski (a third defeat at the hands of the Australian since December 2019).

The 31-year-old ‘Blessed’ remains arguably the most credible challenger to Volkanovski and soundly defeated Yair Rodriguez (the interim featherweight champion) in 2021. A victory over Allen could put him back in the title picture.

The rest of the main card features a featherweight fight between Edson Barboza and Billy Quarantillo; Ion Cutelaba v Tanner Boser, as well as Dustin Jacoby v Azamat Murzakanov, both in the light heavyweight division; a bantamweight battle between Pedro Munhoz and Chris Gutierrez; and a lightweight opener between Clay Guida and Rafa Garcia.

UFC Fight Night: Holloway v Allen – Main card

- Main event: Featherweight: Max Holloway v Arnold Allen

- Featherweight: Edson Barboza v Billy Quarantillo

- Light heavyweight: Ion Cutelaba v Tanner Boser

- Light heavyweight: Dustin Jacoby v Azamat Murzakanov

- Bantamweight: Pedro Munhoz v Chris Gutierrez

- Lightweight: Clay Guida v Rafa Garcia