Allen An ‘Almighty’ Underdog Against Kattar

Fast-rising UFC featherweight prospect Arnold Allen captured his eleventh straight victory and remained undefeated inside the Octagon by making quick work of veteran bruiser Dan Hooker as part of the UFC London co-main event last weekend at O2 Arena in England.

Shortly after the fight, the “Almighty” Englishman turned his attention to the Top 5 of the 145-pound division, calling for a future showdown against the boxing-savvy Calvin Kattar. The 33 year-old “Boston Finisher” is currently ranked No. 5, just two spots above Allen.

“I want to be in the top five and I think he’s top five,” Allen said at the UFC London post-fight press conference (via MMA Junkie). “That’s a fight that would put me there. We got offered that fight for a main event spot last year or earlier in the year, but I was out with injury. I think it works really good. He’s less tall than (Hooker), so that works out. He’s predominantly a boxer, I’m predominantly a boxer, so it’s a fan-friendly fight. I think I’m the better boxer.”

The bookies may think otherwise. Allen (18-1), who turned 28 just a few weeks back, is currently the +170 underdog against Kattar (23-5), a +200 betting favorite. Interestingly enough, the “Boston Finisher” is also a -140 favorite over UFC London’s Ilia Topuria (+120).

Nothing is official at this time but Allen, Kattar, and Topuria are unbooked as of this writing and could be back in action by June, according to reps in both the Allen and Kattar camps. And not to put the cart before the proverbial horse, but defeating Kattar could land Allen on a very short list of eligible title contenders.