Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Featherweight sluggers Jean Silva vs. Arnold Allen will throw down this weekend (Sat., Jan. 24, 2026) inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada for UFC 324.
What a fight to kick off the first main card of the Paramount era! Last time out, Silva was one fight away from his first UFC title shot when he ran into Diego Lopes’ spinning elbow. That’s surely a tough pill to swallow, but is there a better way to come up short than in one of the year’s most entertaining
brawls? At 29 years of age, there’s plenty of time for the Brazilian knockout artist to regain momentum, but he’ll be right back in the mix with a win here.
Arnold Allen, conversely, is a great fighter we don’t see enough of. He didn’t compete a single time in 2025, beating Giga Chikadze and nearly handing Movsar Evloev his first loss the year prior. “Almighty” isn’t an old man either at 31, but the pressure is on for the talented English Featherweight to make his run at the title after a decade on the UFC roster.
Let’s take a closer look at the betting odds and strategic keys for each athlete:
Silva vs. Allen Betting Odds
- Jean Silva victory: -235
- Jean Silva via TKO/KO/DQ: TBD
- Jean Silva via submission: TBD
- Jean Silva via decision: TBD
- Arnold Allen victory: +180
- Arnold Allen via TKO/KO/DQ: TBD
- Arnold Allen via submission: TBD
- Arnold Allen via decision: TBD
- Odds via FanDuel Sportsbook
How Silva Wins
There are moments where Silva looks like a true virtuoso on the feet. An outrageously athletic contender, Silva can slug from both stances, attack moving forward or back, and brings a large variety of offense into the Octagon with him. 15 of his 16 wins come via stoppage, and he’s made a habit of finishing historically durable opponents via strikes.
Jean Silva has quality boxing skills, yet the key here is to avoid a boxing match. Allen’s ability to control exchanges with the jab and build smart combinations are his greatest assets. Silva’s best counter to sharp boxing is to interrupt that flow with kicks, knees, and elbows. What’s great is that Silva understands this dynamic well! The last time Silva faced a really slick boxing in Kevin Vallejos, he changed the fight by incorporating more elbows into his attack, which offset Vallejos’ head movement well.
The other big key here is maintaining composure. Silva was gaining momentum last time out versus Lopes, but he got too excited and started swinging relentlessly. As a result, he walked right into a massive counter and lost the fight. Hopefully, that lesson is learned. Allen may not be as powerful as “Lord Assassin,” but he can definitely hurt the Brazilian if he’s overaggressive.
How Allen Wins
Allen is technically skilled and very experienced. He’s been in the game at a high level for a long time, which shows in his composure and strategy. His boxing is his best asset, but Allen has some slick kick setups as well as an underrated ground game.
Facing a huge hitter like Jean Silva and beating him on the feet is never an easy task. It takes a certain level of confidence and boldness that cannot stray into the realm unnecessary risk. Allen has to manage every exchange carefully and make smart choices, and he has to do it instinctually with little room for error. He’ll have to walk the line of engaging with Silva on his terms without being scared into reactivity or coerced into a brawl.
Allen wins this fight by getting comfortable in the pocket and laying traps. He has to feint well, stick the jab, and then get down low behind his shoulders and elbows. He should also be ripping that long stance of Silva with calf kicks whenever possible. If Allen can start to win the distance battle, he should be able to get Silva swinging back at him while he has a sense of the Brazilian’s timing. From there, it’s a matter of picking his moments, landing hard counters without getting greedy in the process.
Silva vs. Allen Prediction
I find it really difficult to pick against Jean Silva generally. His physicality is outrageous, and he really has an incredible sense of timing as well. He understands the rhythm of striking exchanges better than most power punchers even if he got a little too lost in the sauce versus Lopes. He’s not a perfect fighter, but it feels like on his best day, Silva could run over just about any Featherweight alive.
Allen is a great technician, but he’s going to be working on very small margins. Unlike Lopes, he’s not an especially dangerous finisher, so he absolutely has to establish the jab to win. Unfortunately for him, Silva is likely to come prepared with an answer, be it stance-shifting to smother the lead hand, kicking out the lead leg, or counters over the top.
Ultimately, I don’t think Allen is that much better of a boxer, not enough to cover the gaps in variety and power.
