Arnold Allen and Jean Silva meet in the UFC 324 main card opener Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom.
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Last year’s record: 125-86-3
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UFC main cards, 2026: 0-0-0
Arnold Allen vs. Jean Silva UFC 324 preview
Allen (20-3 MMA, 11-2 UFC) returns after a lengthy layoff. His last fight was a unanimous decision win over Giga Chikadze at UFC 304 in July 2024. That result marked a return to the win column following back-to-back losses to former champ Max Holloway and top contender Movsar Evloev.
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Silva (16-3 MMA, 5-1 UFC) suffered his first UFC loss in September, when he was stopped by Diego Lopes at UFC Fight Night 259. Although he didn’t get the win, Silva extended his bonus streak to four by taking the Fight of the Night. His stoppage wins over Drew Dober, Melsik Baghdasaryan and Bryce Mitchell earned Performance of the Night awards.
Arnold Allen vs. Jean Silva UFC 324 expert pick, prediction
Kicking off the first main card of the Paramount era in proper fashion is a featherweight affair between Arnold Allen and Jean Silva that has fireworks written all over it.
Allen has struggled to build momentum between tough beats in and out of the octagon, but remains a respected and firm presence in the division’s Top 10. Silva, on the other hand, still seems to be holding onto his Top 10 ranking and fan-favorite status despite falling short to Diego Lopes last time out.
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Although the odds feel a bit disrespectful to Allen, I can see why Silva is favored when looking at both his activity and his stats against southpaws. Check out Jean Silva’s southpaw report.
Silva, who seems to prefer fighting in open-stance affairs, has a good feel for fighting southpaws and has had his best performances opposite them in the octagon thus far. And though that trend continuing this weekend wouldn’t surprise me, I’ll be curious to see how Silva deals with a sharp southpaw with a legitimate lead-hand presence.
Outside of Dober (who is clearly in the winter of his career) and a few brief looks opposite a stance-switching Charles Jourdain, Silva has faced more MMA-centric southpaws who primarily load up on their power side. Whereas Allen, at his best, can pressure behind solid fundamentals and an active lead hand.
It’s a very fine line to walk considering that Silva is always a big moment away from swaying the dynamics of a round in his favor, but I believe that Allen has the size, skills and savvy to outland and frustrate Silva down the stretch. I’m also curious to see how Silva’s ultra-emotional stylings and swagger affect him now that he’s coming off of a loss.
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It’s not a popular pick, but I’ll take a flier on Allen and his staying power to edge out the scorecards of a fight that I see being competitive regardless of the result.
Arnold Allen vs. Jean Silva UFC 324 odds
The oddsmakers and the public are favoring the Brazilian fighter, listing Silva -280 and Allen +220 via FanDuel.
Arnold Allen vs. Jean Silva UFC 324 start time, how to watch
As the main card opener, Allen and Silva are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 9:10 p.m. ET (6:10 p.m. PT). The fight streams live on Paramount+.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC 324: Arnold Allen vs. Jean Silva prediction, start time
