Featherweights Arnold Allen, Giga Chikadze to Collide at UFC 304 in Manchester

Two top Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweights will try to move up the ladder this July.

In March, Super Lutas first reported that Arnold Allen (19-3) and Giga Chikadze (15-3) were slated to square off in England, with the date not specified. On Thursday, multiple outlets were able to confirm the featherweight booking for UFC 304, which will go down at the Co-op Live in Manchester, England, on July 27. The only other matchup currently booked for this evening is another 145-pound affair pitting Nathaniel Wood against Daniel Pineda.

Allen is currently riding the first losing streak of his career, having dropped a five-round decision to Max Holloway in April 2023 and then another decision to Movsar Evloev in January. Before losing to the former champ, the Brit had strung together 10 straight wins in the Octagon, where he beat the likes of Calvin Kattar, Dan Hooker and Sodiq Yusuff on his way up the division. This will be Allen’s first outing on home country soil since 2022.

“Ninja” Chikadze bounced back from a setback to Kattar by outworking Alex Caceres via decision in August 2023. Like Allen, Chikadze had brought a great deal of momentum with him into his pairing with Kattar, as he had won his first seven outings in the UFC prior to facing “The Boston Finisher.” Chikadze made waves when he wrecked Cub Swanson with a body kick and punches in 83 seconds, and a subsequent demolition of Edson Barboza pushed him into elite contender status.