Edmen Shahbazyan gave a good account for himself at UFC Fight Night 278, but ultimately he could not steal Brendan Allen’s ranking.
Allen (27-7 MMA, 15-4 UFC) took a major risk on Saturday at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas when the highly ranked middleweight contender fought the unranked Shahbazyan (16-6 MMA, 9-6 UFC) in the co-main event.
It was more competitive than Allen would have hoped, but he emerged with the unanimous decision win by scores of 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28.
“Sean (Strickland) sacrificed his boy, so hopefully he’s next,” Allen said in his post-fight interview with Paul Felder. “This was a big risk – a very big risk, so let’s see.”
The opening round was almost entirely striking-based, with Shahbazyan allowed to build some early confidence striking behind his jab and leg kicks. Allen tried to make the fight dirty, but was hit more often than he landed and had all both his takedown attempts stuffed.
Allen found something with his striking in the second round. He started to connect with hard punches and elbows from close range. He could not find any success with his takedowns, but kept ahead in the striking, even slicing Shahbazyan open to take some momentum back going into the final frame.
With urgent messaging from Shahbazyan’s lead corner Eric Nicksick of Xtreme Couture going into Round 3, Allen was the one who came out with some more urgency as he pressured Shahbazyan backward and landed the cleaner competitions. Shahbazyan continued to bleed as his face swelled, and Allen managed to keep focused down the stretch and close it strong.
With the win, Allen secured his 14th victory in UFC middleweight competition, trailing only Michael Bisping (16) and Brad Tavares (16) all-time. He’s put in his work, and now he wants his first crack at 185-pound gold in a rematch with Strickland.
“I’m a dog,” Allen said. “I’m a real dog. I come here to fight and put on a show for all you guys. I’m going to come out here every time and put it on the line, and I’m coming out here to f*ck someone up. Hopefully we can get that belt at the end of the year or the beginning of next. I’m coming for it, Sean.”
Brendan Allen def. Edmen Shahbazyan via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
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