This past Saturday night in the main event of UFC Vegas 90, we saw a rematch in the middleweight division. Brendan Allen (24-5) was looking to continue his impressive winning streak as he was taking on the last man to defeat him in “The Action Man” Chris Curtis (31-11).
These two first fought back in December 2021 with Curtis getting the second round TKO win. Since then, Allen had won six fights in a row and was originally supposed to face former title challenger Marvin Vettori on Saturday. However, after an injury pulled Vettori out of the fight, Curtis stepped in.
In the first round, Allen was able to get an impressive takedown and get the back of Curtis. It looked like he was going to secure another finish. However, Curtis defended well and survived. In the second round, Curtis landed some big shots on the feet and reminded everyone how he won the first fight.
The next few rounds were back-and-forth with Allen getting hurt a couple of times. He also looked very tired at times. In the fifth round, I had it even with both men going back-and-forth. With 60 seconds left, I was leaning slightly towards Allen due to some fifth round control time. However, Curtis was coming on strong until he hurt his hamstring. Allen poured it on from there which swayed the judges in giving him a split decision win at UFC Vegas 90.
What’s next after UFC Vegas 90?
When Allen took the microphone after the fight, he started calling for a title shot. Well, I hate to burst that bubble, but that’s not happening. Even with a seven-fight win streak, there’s no way Allen is getting a title shot. Israel Adesanya is getting the next shot, Sean Strickland is up there and then Robert Whittaker – Khamzat Chimaev are fighting for a title shot next.
The reality is, Allen probably needs two more wins before he’s in a position to challenge for a UFC title. Might sound crazy, but it’s the reality he’s in. So, who should be next for the UFC middleweight contender. There are three good options in my opinion.
Running things back with Sean Strickland is certainly a possibly. However, after Saturday’s performance, I am not in the camp of thinking that Brendan Allen would beat the former champion. They could rebook the Marvin Vettori fight or perhaps even look at a fight with Jared Cannonier next. A win over any of those three would likely get Allen in the discussion for a title fight, but he might need one more win after unless he’s content with waiting in line.