Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Middleweight finishers Reinier de Ridder vs. Brendan Allen will go to war (Sat., Oct. 18, 2025) inside Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for UFC Vancouver.

de Ridder has been in the UFC for less than 12 months but has taken the promotion by storm. He’s already picked up four quality wins, a trio of finishes and then a main event war opposite former champion Robert Whittaker. Nassourdine Imavov is still the odds-on favorite to score the next Middleweight title shot (right?!?!?!), but there’s a real chance “The Dutch Knight” could sneak ahead of him if victorious . Allen, conversely, is stepping up on short-notice after Anthony Hernandez’s injury last month (details here). On the plus side, he’s coming off a victory, a reasonably entertaining slugfest opposite whatever’s left of Marvin Vettori. This is a huge opportunity for Allen, who has historically come up short in his chances against truly elite Middleweight opposition.

De Ridder is an accomplished jiu-jitsu black belt with very slack grappling regardless of whether he’s in top or bottom position. On the feet, de Ridder is definitely hittable, but he pushes a brutal pace and lately has really been taking the wind from his opponent’s sails by slamming the mid-section with stepping knees. De Ridder has to wrestle carefully here. Takedowns should definitely be part of his attack, but he cannot sell out on them entirely. Allen is a strong grappler himself, and de Ridder doesn’t want to put himself in bad positions needlessly. Consistent pressure and offense will eventually open a path for him to gain top control — he doesn’t have to force it.