VANCOUVER — Brendan Allen played spoiler as he ended Reiner de Ridder’s year of momentum in UFC, winning via technical knockout in front of a capacity crowd at Rogers Arena for UFC Fight Night.
De Ridder (21-3) had been looking to continue his streak of four wins in less than a year to set up a potential fight against middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev.
Allen (26-7) was a late addition to the fight in Vancouver, replacing Anthony (Fluffy) Hernandez a month ago.
The fight was halted after the fourth round after de Ridder’s corner threw the towel in, following rounds of ground fighting leaving the Dutch fighter visibly exhausted between rounds and needing help getting to his corner.
Meanwhile, Canadians Mike Malott, Kyle Nelson, Charles Jourdain, Aiemann Zahabi and Melissa Croden all recorded wins in front of a patriotic crowd.
Malott (13-2-1) outlasted veteran Kevin Holland (28-15) to move back into the welterweight top 15 ranking.
Malott repeatedly backed Holland into the cage, dictating the tone in a stop-start fight that was twice halted for hits below the belt on Holland.
At the lightweight level, Nelson (17-6-1) thought he had beaten American Matt Frevola (11-6-1) at the end of the first round only for the referee to inexplicably end the round early but continue the fight.
The referee appeared to stop the round with three seconds left on the clock, prompting confusion from Nelson’s corner before the second round started.
At the bantamweight level, Jourdain (17-8-1) drove a flying knee into Davey Grant’s (17-8) face, knocking the Englishman to the ground before winning by guillotine submission in the first round.
Zahabi (14-2), from Montreal, Que., won by split decision over Marlon Vera (23-11-1) stretching his winning streak to seven in a row.
Vera left the ring visibly angry, flashing Zahabi the middle finger as he went for his post-fight medical.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 18, 2025.
The Canadian Press
