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Suffolk star Allen to face late stand-in Lentz at UFC Raleigh
Arnold Allen (right) will now face Nik Lentz at UFC Raleigh on January 25. Picture: PA SPORT - Credit: PA Wire/PA Images
Suffolk’s UFC superstar Arnold Allen will face veteran Nik Lentz as a late stand-in at UFC Raleigh next week after his original opponent Josh Emmett pulled out of the fight with an undisclosed injury.
Arnold Allen (right) will now face Nik Lentz at UFC Raleigh on January 25. Picture: PA SPORT - Credit: PA Wire/PA Images
Allen (15-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC), the 15th-ranked featherweight in the world, was due to take another step up the ladder by battling 10th ranked Emmett in North Carolina on January 25th, but the hugely respected and teak-tough Lentz has stepped into the void.
Lentz (30-10-2, 14-7 UFC ) is a career lightweight and was due to step down to 145lbs for the first time to battle Brit Nad Narimani on the same show, but Narimani was also forced out hurt.
Arnold Allen is one of the best young prospects in all of MMA. Picture: BRETT KING - Credit: Archant
Thus the fast-rising Suffolk talent and the grizzled veteran will clash on a card headlined by the heavyweight dust-up between Curtis Blaydes and former champion Junior Dos Santos.
Trimley St Martin's Allen, 25, is coming off a career best win over MMA legend Gilbert Melendez in Las Vegas last July, totally outclassing the former Strikeforce champ in a wide points win.
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He's also beaten Jordan Rinaldi, Mads Burnell, Makwan Amirkhani, Yaotzin Meza and Alan Omer in his UFC run.
Lentz, meanwhile, has been fighting in the UFC since September 2009, and has more fights inside the famed octagon than Allen does in total.
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The 35-year-old's notable wins include Gray Maynard, Will Brooks, Tyson Griffin and Danny Castillo, while he's lost to the likes of Charles Oliveira (twice), Chad Mendes and Evan Dunham.
