Arnold Allen has been in there with Movsar Evloev, and he’s arguably come closest to beating him.So when it comes to predicting the main event of UFC 333, where the undefeated Evloev could become a first-time champion if he defeats Alexander Volkanovski, Allen’s opinion carries weight.Allen, left, lost a close unanimous decision to Saturday’s title challenger Evloev at UFC 297GettyAllen was also meant to be on the Abu Dhabi card this weekend, but injury forced him to pull out of his fight against Aaron Pico, with Losene Keita stepping in instead.Oddsmakers can barely separate Volkanovski and Evloev, but speaking to talkSPORT.com, Allen used his 2024 loss to the Russian, which he believes he won, to explain why he thinks the champion will retain his throne.In the eyes of MMA purists, the fight is simple: Evloev, an esteemed wrestler, must take Volkanovski to the canvas to get his arm raised.But Allen believes Evloev will tire out if this is the case, and Volkanovski’s fearlessness and experience in the Octagon will pay dividends.Allen's UFC 333 picksMain card predictionsAlexander Volkanovski def. Movsar EvloevPetr Yan def. Merab DvalishviliLone’er Kavanagh def. Ramazan TemirovAlexander Volkov def. Rizvan KunievLosene Keita def. Aaron PicoAllen predicts Volkanovski vs Evloev at UFC 333“Personally, I think Volk is the worst fight for Movsar, style-wise, strategy-wise,” Allen said, hours after the UFC 333 press conference, where Volkanovski dressed as his character Joe in the new Street Fighter film.“[Evloev’s] not a finisher — he’s going to take down control. I felt even in my fight with him, it was only three rounds — the third round, I felt pretty good, but he was tired.“The scrambling, the tactics and him chasing the body locks. The wrestling, constantly making him shoot and get up — he seemed a bit tired in that third round.“This is five rounds. Volk’s a scrambly guy — he’s very small as well and hard to hold down.“He uses a lot of those Craig Jones tactics where he does the octopus guard, the heisting with the hips.“I think he’ll cause a lot of problems and I don’t think he’s going to have any fear of Evloev’s finishing threat.Allen believes Volkanovski will have no fear of Evloev’s finishing threat at UFC 333Getty“If he gets taken down, is there fear of heavy ground and pound, is there fear of a submission coming? I would say not, but that could be why he gets caught in one!”Allen is backing Volkanovski to live up to his ‘The Great’ nickname, but he said the 38-year-old Australian champion arriving worn down by years of brutal training camps might be the one thing in Evloev’s favour.Evloev has never won inside the distance in the UFC and cemented his title shot with a majority decision over Briton Lerone Murphy in London five months ago.“That is kind of the only factor that I question whether [Volkanovski] wins or not,” the English No. 6-ranked UFC featherweight added.“It’s not even the age — it’s more he’s had so many of these high-level, five-round camps and fights.“He’s probably done more than anyone at that level. He’s the king of five rounds, game-planning.“The training stuff he does is infamous — the meat grinder. It looks like hell and to do that every camp, that’s got to be tough.Volkanovski contests his 12th consecutive UFC title fight against Evloev on SaturdayGettyAllen called him the ‘king of five rounds and game-planning’Getty“I don’t do that and my body is pretty messed up now. So for him at 38 and having done that a long time, it must be tough.“Saying that, he’s here though and all those things don’t matter. I’m sure he’s fit, healthy.”Volkanovski’s biggest fight might come after UFC 333Volkanovski, who doesn’t care about being champion at this stage of his career, has toyed with retirement for years.He has said in the build-up to UFC 333 that he would lay down the gloves once and for all if matched against lightweight champion Justin Gaethje for a super-fight.talkSPORT’s No. 2 pound-for-pound UFC star has also reiterated that he is still as driven as ever and believes his performance against Evloev will be one of his greatest.Evloev will be Volkanovski’s 19th UFC opponent (33rd in his professional MMA career) and 12th title fight since his promotional debut 10 years ago.View Tweet: https://x.com/alexvolkanovski?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwA win would put Volkanovski one ahead of Jose Aldo‘s longtime record of eight featherweight title wins.For Allen, this would be enough to retire, but he understands it’s an extremely difficult decision to make.“I feel like if I’m Volk at that point, what is there, what else is there? I know he has lost — he’s been knocked out or whatever, but he took the risks and all these things,” Allen said.“It looks like he’s made his money — the guy’s got some great businesses beside him. The cooking channel [Cooking with Volk] is as big as his fighting career, if not bigger?“I don’t know, it must be tough. Retirement is a scary thing in fighting — it’s under-talked about.“In MMA, the characters aren’t as big — we’re not superstars like a lot of the elite boxers, but the thought of retiring and leaving…Allen said retirement is a scary thing and is not talked about enough in MMAGetty“You’re never seen again, essentially, after that. In boxing, you’re on a podcast, you’re on a show, you’re a co-host on a show, something like that.“I can imagine he’s the kind of character that needs to be doing something to be happy. Retiring seems tough and I’m not champion.“In my mind now it seems a lot easier to retire once I’ve won a belt. I’m like, alright, I won it, I’m done, but he’s trying to be the GOAT.”UFC ScheduleThere are still several blockbuster shows and exciting contests for fight fans to look forward to in 2026, and you can find the full list of all confirmed events and official bouts as part of talkSPORT.com’s UFC schedule.The UFC, on average, puts on 13 to 14 premium events in a calendar year, with up to 30 smaller ‘Fight Night’ cards allowing prospects and less experienced fighters to showcase their talents.On January 1, 2026, Dana White’s promotion signed a seven-year broadcast deal with CBS and Paramount+ for exclusive rights in the US, meaning the UFC has put on shows like never before this year.With the historic first event in the new Paramount era, UFC 324, delivering huge success, and a one-of-a-kind fight card at the White House in June opening up the UFC to a new audience, the promotion remains a premium global sports brand, and fans are eager to keep track of results and upcoming fights.