Prior to each UFC card, Jay Primetown takes a close look at debuting fighters. In the latest installment, we look at Englishman Arnold Allen as he takes on Alan Omer at UFC Fight Night 69 in Berlin, Germany Arnold “Almighty” Allen Hometown: Felixstowe, England Age: 21 Height: 5’9” Reach: N/A Weight Class: Featherweight Camp: BKK Fighters Career Record: 9-1 Key Wins: None Key Losses: None Background At only 21 years of age, Allen is one of the youngest fighters in the UFC. Training out of BKK Fighters with with former UFC fighters Luke Barnatt and John Maguire, Allen is a second generation fighter. His father, Pacer Allen, fought twice professionally at heavyweight finishing with a record of 1-1. Strengths
- Very good footwork
- Strikes well in combination to setup position to clinch
- At his best in the clinch working for takedowns
- Wears his opponents down with constant pressure
- Uses combination of body lock and trip takedowns to secure position
- Solid ground and pound
Weaknesses
- Focused more on wearing opponent out than inflicting damage
- Too hittable on the feet in prolonged striking exchanges
- Doesn’t attempt to check leg kicks
- Can be too aggressive overcommitting to situations and thus loses favorable positions
- Cuts almost no weight to make featherweight
- Can be out muscled by oversized featherweights
Matchup with Alan Omer On paper, this is a very competitive fight. Omer is the bigger puncher with the better submission game. On the flip side, Arnold is better conditioned and more focused on scoring takedowns. I expect these fighters to trade a bit, but ultimately this fight will settled by how effective Arnold can be clinch and control the action in this fight. He’s taking this fight on less than a week’s notice which is a standard red flag. However, he cuts almost no weight to make 145 pounds, so I don’t expect him to be physically drained from the weight cut. If in fact there are no issues with the cut, I think this fight should be much closer to even than the (-210) favorite Alan Omer opened at. Ultimately, Omer is more experienced and is the fighter that has shown to be a finisher. There’s a reason he’s the favorite, but Arnold’s grinding style has all the makings for this to be a toss-up if it hits the judges’ scorecards. UFC Ceiling Arnold Allen is one of the more intriguing prospects in recent times to come out of England. He’s extremely young for the sport having turned only 21 earlier this year. He possesses good footwork, improving striking, and a style that typically does well in MMA with a good motor. There are holes in his defense that he needs to work on, but overall he has the tools to be successful in MMA. Given his age, he should see significant improvement from fight to fight. He could stick around a featherweight for some time, but I think he has the tools to one day be a top 15 bantamweight if he dropped to 135 pounds. His size and physicality would be difficult to match in that weight class. Fight Film Check out Arnold Allen in some of his most recent fights: Arnold Allen vs. Gaetano Pirrello