Most fighters who choke out a guy riding a five-fight win streak in the fifth round, then pick up a bonus check, spend the next 48 hours smiling. Brendan Allen is apparently grading his own homework with a red pen.
Sherdog flagged it on X Monday, writing that Allen is “still not satisfied” after his UFC Vegas 122 win over Christian Leroy Duncan. The outlet reported that Allen was critical of his performance in the Octagon despite the finish and the post-fight bonus. Sherdog’s post teased the story without spelling out his specific complaints, so the details of what bugged him are in its write-up and not in the post itself.
What he actually did
The result looks plenty good on paper. Allen submitted Duncan with a rear-naked choke in the fifth round on Saturday night, a finish UFC Brasil and Bovada both posted on X right after it happened. Going in, the betting market treated it as close to a coin flip. Championship Rounds had Allen at a 52% chance to win and pointed out that Duncan arrived on a five-fight win streak. Allen snapped that streak and got paid extra for doing it.
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The win moves the Louisiana native to 28-7. He sits at No. 11 at middleweight in Knockout Daily’s rankings, and he was listed at No. 5 in the Meta UFC middleweight rankings as of Aug. 29. He fights out of Kill Cliff FC.
Allen has been in the UFC since 2019, when a first-round submission of Aaron Jeffery on Dana White’s Contender Series earned him a contract. He submitted Kevin Holland in his debut. His two UFC losses during his early run both came by second-round TKO, to Sean Strickland and Chris Curtis. Those were the nights he had real reasons to be upset. Saturday wasn’t one of them.
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Why the self-critique matters
I’ll take a guy who’s mad after a win over a guy who’s thrilled after a split decision any day. A fighter who wins a five-round fight by submission, banks a bonus and still hunts for mistakes is the kind of fighter who keeps climbing a stacked division instead of parking at No. 11 and coasting. That’s a better look than half the middleweights currently cashing safe decisions.
Allen has no next fight booked. The question already started before he left the cage. MMA content creator Dovy asked his followers on X who Allen should fight next, about four minutes after Bovada posted the choke. If Allen is this hard on himself after beating a guy on a five-fight run, he’s going to want a name with a number next to it.
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