Brendan Allen is hopeful he can get a shot at the middleweight title if he beats his next opponent.
Allen travels to enemy territory on Saturday to face French challenger Nassouddin Imavov at UFC Fight Night 243 at the Accor Arena in Paris. While Allen acknowledges Imavov’s striking speed, he believes Allen is the better fighter overall.
“His defining characteristic is his speed. I think I’m better,” Allen recently told TMZ Sports. “I think he probably thinks he’s better than me. I think I’m better in every way. I don’t think he’s ever fought anyone with my skill set, my athleticism, my experience. I don’t think he’s ever fought anyone that has it all. He’s probably thinking he’s going to run through me and beat me up, which is fine. A lot of people have done that before, and a lot of people have lost, so hopefully he’ll be the next beaten up.”
Allen is currently riding a seven-fight winning streak, including five submissions, and is on the brink of a title shot. Meanwhile, the middleweight title race is a bit more uncertain at the moment. Dricus du Plessis won the title in a controversial split decision victory over Shawn Strickland at UFC 297 in January. Du Plessis defended the title by submission against Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 in August. Strickland has been adamant that he will fight for the title next, and Dana White has suggested that this is probably the case. However, the upcoming matchup between top contender Khamzat Chimaev and former champion Robert Whittaker at UFC 308 on October 26 cannot be completely discounted as a chance for a title shot. In the middle of the crowded field, Allen is hoping to impress enough at UFC Paris to create an excuse to claim the gold. As for his opponent preference, Allen is open to either du Plessis, who he has wanted to face for a while, or Strickland, whom he beat by TKO in 2020.
“Hopefully I’ll have a chance to win the title in this match… [Du Plessis] “I’ve been wanting to be with him ever since he’s been in this organization,” Allen said, “so hopefully when I get there he’ll be selected as well. And by the way, if Sean wins and I get the spot next, that would be awesome for me too. I don’t care who the next guy is. I’ll definitely pick one of them next, but I’m not going to wait a year for that. It’s a weird place in the division right now. It’s just the way it is. And hopefully I can stand out from the crowd and get another chance.”
