Arnold Allen eyes interim title shot but uncertain who actually deserves it
Arnold Allen is hoping to fight for the interim title next but doesn’t know who it would be against.
With the featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski set to move up to lightweight and face Islam Makhachev for the lightweight strap, an interim title will likely be next. However, it’s uncertain which two fighters will fight for the title as Arnold Allen, Josh Emmett, and Yair Rodriguez are all in the conversation.
Yet, Allen is coming off a win over Calvin Kattar in a fight in which Kattar injured his knee and the fight was stopped. Emmett is coming off a controversial split decision win over Kattar while Rodriguez’s last win was over Brian Ortega who dislocated his shoulder in the first round. With that, Allen says he isn’t certain who should deserve fighting for the interim title as all three are coming off non-definitive wins.
“Obviously there was the injury with Yair and Brian and then Calvin. (Josh) Emmett (vs. Kattar), it was a real close decision. I wanted the performance to stand out so I could actually ask (for a title shot). Look, this deserves it more than that and that,” Allen said after UFC Vegas 63. “But now I’m in the same boat. We might as well all hang out together and talk about it… I don’t have an opinion on it. Everyone’s getting dodgy wins and weird things. It’s hard to say who deserves it. I don’t know. Whoever.”
Allen is currently ranked sixth at 145lbs but will enter the top-five after his win while Emmett and Rodriguez are ranked fourth and second in the division, respectively. However, Allen is on the longest winning streak as he’s undefeated in the UFC and is 10-0 inside the Octagon. With that, the hope for Arnold Allen is he will be fighting for UFC gold next time out against either Emmett or Rodriguez.
