Just a few weeks before he was scheduled to headline UFC Vegas 90, Brendan Allen received the call any fighter would dread. It was because his opponent was absent due to injury.
The news comes after Allen and his opponent Marvin Vettori exchanged numerous shots through interviews and social media, and even more shots when the two competed at UFC 299.
“It was insane,” Allen told MMA Fighting. “On Monday, I realized that [Vettori] He wasn't going to fight after he talked some nasty things and made some minor obscenities at the Miami pay-per-view over the weekend. We found out on Monday that he wasn't going to fight.
“I waited until Wednesday and was basically told I could go home. I was in training and wanted to go home if I wasn't going to fight.”
Allen primarily trains at Killcliff MMA in Florida, but lives in Louisiana with his family. After he knew he would no longer be fighting, he packed up his things and went home, taking advantage of the extra time with his children.
He had barely made it onto the plane when the UFC contacted him again.
“I booked a flight for Thursday,” Allen explained. “I was on my way home after sparring on Thursday and they called me and said they were talking about Chris Curtis. We said, 'This is no way for me to win. “I think. If you think about it that way, it's a loss for me. [UFC said,] “They already said no, so go home.”
“I had another connection to Louisiana. I got a call from the UFC about 20 minutes after I got to Louisiana, we had a discussion, and that's what they wanted, so I So I did. I booked a flight to Florida and went back to training.”
Although frustrated by the turn of events, Allen couldn't complain too much. Because at least he didn't waste the entire training camp.
The downside for Allen is that he was hoping to fight a top-ranked fighter at middleweight, but is once again fighting below the rankings. Vettori's departure ruined that plan. But Allen remains open to re-engaging Curtis. His last fight was just one of two losses on his UFC record.
“It's been a real roller coaster for sure,” Allen said. “Fortunately, I continued to diet and train. It was nice to go home for two days to reset and see my kids. It's okay, it's good. It's the worst, because it's always beyond my control. Because it's a bull*** that's beyond the control of the UFC. It's somebody else I'm fighting that's the problem. Everyone's like, 'hurt.' Well, I'm hurt too. I fought even though I was hurt. I've never gotten out of a fight. My leg has to hang off the other half in order to cut it in half and pull it out. That's just crazy.
“That's beyond my control. Not having a chance to really move up and not having followers are the main reasons why I can't have a shot at the title right now. If it was skill-based, I wouldn't be champion. Because I really feel like I can. But I think it's obviously about who gets a seat and who gets a bigger opportunity. That's the reality.”
Allen also responded to Vettori's passionate message after the former UFC title challenger pulled out of a scheduled fight.
In a video posted to social media, Vettori promised to “punch her face in just because it looks funny,” adding, “See you again.”
“If we can't get into the war, we have no chance of winning the war,” Allen replied. “Last year he had the option to fight me and he didn't take it. This time he backed out. Two strikes and you're out. It's game over. Let's see. Everyone. I saw a little video of him. He's in Vegas right now. Let's take a look. It's a no-brainer for me.
“That guy is just delusional. He's irrational. You can't have any kind of rational conversation with someone who's delusional and irrational. It's literally impossible. At this point, there's literally nothing you can do to talk. There's nothing. I signed a contract to fight. I'm just fighting someone else. If he does what he says in the video, we'll know. [this weekend]. We'll probably play two games in Las Vegas. I do not care. I don't say anything. I'm not going to go out of my way to say it, but as far as I'm concerned, I'm not an ab****. I will investigate. I think so. ”
As for this weekend's rematch with Curtis, Allen doesn't have a bad word to say about his veteran opponent. However, there is no doubt that this rematch is more about revenge than rankings. Allen is undefeated in six straight fights since losing to Curtis in 2021, but Curtis hasn't been as lucky, going 2-2 in his last five fights, including one no-contest.
“Honestly, the only thing I get out of this job is getting paid and hopefully getting revenge,” Allen said. “In my eyes, this guy is the only two things we're going to get out of this piece. I hope the UFC sees what I'm doing and continues to take away from me. I hope something good comes out of it.” I hope you can get that.
“I met Sean. [Strickland] He beats an unranked man and gets a chance to win the title in 6th place. Hopefully, if I can go out there and finish Chris off, then I can get into a fight with Shawn next or a fight with the champion right away. That would be the best case scenario, a title shot. The second best scenario would be to get Sean. ”
