Rivalries: Brendan Allen

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Brendan Allen lacks only consistency at this stage of his development in the Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight division.

The 26-year-old Sanford MMA rep will seek to establish some momentum at 185 pounds when he toes the line against Jacob Malkoun in the featured UFC 275 prelim on Saturday at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore. Allen has collected 10 wins across his past 12 appearances. He last competed at UFC Fight Night 200, where he submitted Sam Alvey with a rear-naked choke in the second round of their Feb. 5 confrontation.

As Allen moves ever closer to his battle with Malkoun, a look at some of the rivalries that have helped shape his career to this point:

Aaron Jeffery

As the reigning Legacy Fighting Alliance middleweight champion, Allen lived up to the hype when he submitted the Canadian with a rear-naked choke in the first round of their middleweight clash during Season 3 of Dana White’s Contender Series on July 16, 2019 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Jeffery conceded defeat 3:23 into Round 1, his four-fight winning streak having run its course. Allen lured the BTC Fight Promotions titleholder into the clinch, floored him with a short-range knee strike and moved into top position before passing to side control. The Roufusport product then advanced to the back without much resistance, cinched the choke and forced the tap. Afterwards, the UFC brought Allen aboard.

Kevin Holland

Allen submitted the “Trailblazer” with a rear-naked choke in the second round of their UFC on ESPN 6 middleweight prelim on Oct. 18, 2019 at TD Garden in Boston. A short-notice replacement for the injured Eric Spicely, Holland bowed out 3:38 into Round 2. Allen did not escape unscathed. Holland—who entered the cage on a three-fight winning streak—opened a diagonal cut on his left eyebrow, advanced to mount and flirted with a rear-naked choke in the first round. His efforts failed and provided Allen with new life entering the middle stanza. Holland executed a takedown early in Round 2 but squandered his advantage and wound up in bottom position. Allen settled in half guard, applied his ground-and-pound and briefly climbed to full mount before transitioning to the fight-ending choke.

Sean Strickland

The former King of the Cage champion cut down Allen with punches in the second round of their UFC Fight Night 182 catchweight feature on Nov. 14, 2020 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Strickland brought it to a close 92 seconds into Round 2. He lit up Allen with a sharp jab and crisp two-punch combinations, all while mixing in a first-round takedown and a few front kicks to the face. The Duke Roufus protégé zeroed in on Strickland’s lower leg with kicks early in Round 2—he appeared to have the Californian in some distress—but paid the price for porous striking defense. “Tarzan” staggered Allen with a chopping right hand, dropped him to his knees with a left hook and followed with unabated rights to the head that forced referee Herb Dean to act.

Chris Curtis

The Xtreme Couture rep blew through Allen with punches and knees in the second round of their UFC on ESPN 31 middleweight showcase on Dec. 4, 2021 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. A short-notice replacement for Roman Dolidze, Curtis drew the curtain 1:58 into Round 2. Allen secured an early takedown and jumped on the former CES MMA titleholder’s back, then returned to a standup battle when there were no finishing opportunities to be found. He kept Curtis at bay with stepping knees to the body, rangy combinations and a partially blocked head kick but failed to give him true pause. A leg lock attempt at the end of the first round went nowhere. Early in the second, Curtis followed a left hook to the body with a clubbing right upstairs that set the Sanford MMA export on unsteady legs. He then drove Allen to the fence and cut loose with a variety of shots before two final knee strikes slammed the door shut.