RALEIGH, N.C. – Arnold Allen beat Nik Lentz with a unanimous decision Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC on ESPN+ 24 in Raleigh, N.C.
Take a look inside the fight with Allen, who won for the ninth straight time and improved to a perfect 7-0 in the UFC.
Result: Arnold Allen def. Nik Lentz via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Updated records: Allen (16-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC), Lentz (30-11-2 MMA, 14-8-1 UFC)
Key stat: The striking totals were close – Allen won by just a 68-63 margin. But officially, he stuffed all nine of Lentz’s takedown attempts.
Allen on the fight’s key moment
“The first round, I felt like it could have gone either way. But the second and third rounds I felt confident were mine. I knew I had done enough to get the decision. Nik is basically the complete opposite of what we were prepping for with (Josh) Emmett. He’s not a one-punch bomber, but he’s a veteran and a strong wrestler who is going to try and grind you out. He did everything we thought he would, but I was also pleasantly surprised with his striking. He’s made a lot of improvements in his last few fights.”
Allen on working his way into contention
“I feel great. They took me out of the rankings, but as I always say, keep winning and everything will take care of itself.”
Allen on what he wants next
“I’m on the longest win streak in the featherweight division and I’m not even on the final prelim fight of the night and I didn’t even get an interview in the octagon, so it’s not really up to me (what I want next). I’ll keep winning and eventually they won’t have a choice.”
To hear more from Allen, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.
