Arnold Allen has praised his mentor Jack Mason ahead of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night: Berlin showdown with Alan Omer.
The Felixstowe featherweight – who trains with Mason at BKK Fighters – makes his promotional debut at short notice after Mike Wilkinson was forced to pull out with a shoulder injury.
“Jack will never try to take anything from me,” said Allen. “He’s basically managed me, matched my fights, and I’ll try to give him money but he’ll never take it. There’s not a situation he hasn’t seen in mixed martial arts.
“He’s had, what, fifty fights? It’s brilliant to have someone with his kind of experience on board. At the gym we all work as together – it’s heartfelt and it’s for everyone. We’re a proper team and there’s no “I’m not going to help that guy, I’m not going to help this guy.” We travel all over the world to help eachother and it’s a real team. It’s good.”
Learning from veteran Mason along the way, Allen, 9-1, went 5-1 in Cage Warriors between July 2013 and August 2014.
The 21-year-old used to be known for trading on the feet but his wrestling has improved at a rapid rate recently. Omer, 26, holds the edge in experience though with a crafty set of submissions.
So how will Allen cope stepping in without a full camp? “We train hard all year regardless – we don’t have fight camps and we train hard whether we have a fight or not.
“I’d read Wilkinson saying he’d never get injured again so I was surprised when he pulled out. It’s awesome to be on the card but it doesn’t mean shit if I lose.
“This is just another fight for me and I’m not happy to be here if I lose – it’s just another day at the office. It’s all business.”
by Ally Hendrie
