The UFC is returning to the UK for a PPV in July and we now know of a big time featherweight matchup that will be on the card. Super Lutas was the first to report that top ten featherweights Arnold Allen (19-3) and Giga Chikadze (15-3) will go toe-to-toe in Manchester.
Starting with Giga Chikadze, he will be looking to play spoiler at UFC 304 by defeating Arnold Allen in front of his home country. In doing so, Chikadze will also be looking to pickup his second straight win in addition to jumping back near the top five at featherweight.
Back in 2021, Chikadze looked like he was knocking on the door of a title shot after stopping Edson Barboza. He was booked against Calvin Kattar and had he won that fight, he would’ve earned himself a title shot. Unfortunately, he lost a lopsided decision. From there, he was gone nearly a year and a half before successfully returning last August by defeating Alex Caceres. Now, he’ll look to get back into the UFC title picture with a win over Arnold Allen.
UFC 304
Like Chikadze, Arnold Allen was recently knocking on the door of a UFC title shot. Entering 2023, Allen had won 12 fights in a row and was a perfect 10-0 inside the octagon. That streak led to a fight against Max Holloway in a main event last April at UFC Kansas City.
Allen came on strong in the later rounds of that fight but ultimately lost a decision. Following that fight, he took on Movsar Evloev back in January. Allen had his moments late in that fight, but he didn’t have an answer for the wrestling of Evloev and lost a decision.
After not losing for years, Allen has now lost two in a row. It’s a homecoming for him at UFC 304 and he needs a win in the worst way so expect a very motivated Arnold Allen in July.
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