RDR looks to move closer to title fight

Reinier de Ridder will look to move closer to a title fight when he takes on Brendan Allen in the middleweight main event of a UFC Fight Night, set for the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, Canada, on the morning of 19 October 2025.

De Ridder (21-2) has racked up five successive wins, most recently claiming a split decision win over former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker in July to further underline his status as a threat for the belt.

The 35-year-old “Dutch Knight” knows that he will need to make a statement this weekend if he is to jump to the front of the queue for a chance at dethroning Khamzat Chimaev, who won the title off Dricus du Plessis in August.

“The most important thing this fight is, I need to finish [Allen],” he said. “To have a chance to fight for the title, I need to finish him, so that's what I'm coming for.”

De Ridder was supposed to have faced Anthony Hernandez in this Fight Night, but “Fluffy” was forced to withdraw due to injury, allowing Allen (25-7) to step in as a replacement.

The 29-year-old, nicknamed “All In”, was last in action at UFC 318 in July, claiming a unanimous decision triumph over Marvin Vettori to return to winning ways, having been beaten by both Nassourdine Imavov and Hernandez in his two previous matches.

Allen is confident that he has an edge over De Ridder in terms of his all-round abilities: “I think I'll break him because I'm better everywhere. I don't think he can strike better than me. I don't think he's tougher than me. I don't think his grappling's better than me. A lot of guys are scared of his grappling. I'm not scared at all.”

The rest of the main card features another welterweight banger, pitting Kevin Holland against Mike Malott; Marlon Vera takes on Aiemann Zahabi, and Cody Gibson faces Aori Qileng, both in the bantamweight division; a women’s flyweight battle sees Manon Fiorot tackle Jasmine Jasudavicius; and a lightweight match pits Kyle Nelson against Matt Frevola.

UFC FIGHT NIGHT: DE RIDDER VS. ALLEN – MAIN CARD

- Main event: Middleweight: Reinier de Ridder v Brendan Allen

- Welterweight: Kevin Holland v Mike Malott

- Bantamweight: Marlon Vera v Aiemann Zahabi

- Women’s flyweight: Manon Fiorot v Jasmine Jasudavicius

- Bantamweight: Cody Gibson v Aori Qileng

- Lightweight: Kyle Nelson v Matt Frevola