Prime Picks: UFC Vancouver ‘de Ridder vs. Allen’

Contenders with eyes on the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s middleweight throne will take leading roles in the company’s first show in western Canada in more than two years.

Former two-division ONE Championship titleholder Reinier de Ridder puts his five-fight winning streak on the line when he tangles with Kill Cliff Fight Club standout Brendan Allen in the UFC Fight Night 262 headliner on Saturday at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia. Meanwhile, Mike Malott looks to feast on some home cooking, as the Canadian dukes it out with Kevin Holland in the three-round welterweight co-main event.


Buckle up, as we examine the card from a bettor’s perspective and attempt to get the most bang for our buck in the latest installment of Prime Picks:

Reinier de Ridder Wins By Decision (+330)

No one in the middleweight division carries more current momentum than de Ridder. The monstrous 6-foot-4 Dutchman walks around well north of 200 pounds and figures to have discernible size, strength and reach advantages against Allen, a short-notice replacement for Anthony Hernandez. De Ridder (-198) has compiled a perfect 4-0 record since he joined the UFC roster in 2024, and while he wields a diverse skillset, he does his best work at close range and in grappling exchanges—as evidenced by his 13 victories via submission. However, the resilient Allen has not been finished in almost four years, and he has only been submitted once in his 32-fight career. De Ridder’s suspect gas tank might also come into play in the latter stages of the match and could force him to coast down the stretch, conserve his energy and sit on a lead he seems likely to build across the first three rounds. Allen (+164) should not be taken lightly as a live underdog in a showdown that may determine the long-term outlook for both men.

Marlon Vera (+114)

Now 34 appearances deep into his career, the popular Ecuadorian has yet to lose three fights in a row—a statistical fact that gets put to the test in a three-round bantamweight showcase opposite the resurgent Aiemann Zahabi. Vera enters the cage on the heels of consecutive decision losses to then-champion Sean O’Malley and former flyweight titleholder Deiveson Figueiredo. With his 33rd birthday looming in December, he can ill afford another misstep and seems primed to spring a mild upset at 135 pounds. Vera has never been finished as a pro and should at the very least make the sledding difficult for his Canadian counterpart. Zahabi (-135) has rattled off six straight wins since his May 2019 decision defeat to Vince Morales and appears to be hitting his stride at age 37. The Tristar Gym rep deserves to be favored after he outpointed Jose Aldo at UFC 315 in May, but Vera presents challenges all his own. Friskier bettors might consider Vera Wins Inside the Distance at +300, leaning into a lengthy track record that has seen him post 18 of his 23 victories by some form of finish.

Kyle Nelson Wins By KO/TKO (+215)

Opportunity knocks for Huntsville, Ontario, native, who draws Matt Frevola in what promises to be an entertaining lightweight appetizer for as long as it lasts. Nelson has won three of his past four bouts but has not yet moved beyond the midcard in the 155-pound weight class, his traction having been undercut by a draw with Doo Ho Choi and ill-timed losses to Billy Quarantillo, Jai Herbert and Steve Garcia. Nevertheless, matchmakers have teed him up here. Frevola (-120) steps back into the spotlight reeling from consecutive knockout losses to Benoit St. Denis and Fares Ziam, and defense has always seemed optional at best for the Serra-Longo Fight Team product. For a fighter like Nelson who wants to make a move on the lightweight ladder, matchups do not come much more favorable than this one. Alternate options to consider include Frevola Wins Inside the Distance (+150) and Frevola Wins By KO/TKO (+200), leaving open the possibility that the always-dangerous New York native can lure Nelson into a firefight and come out on the other side with his hand raised.

PARLAYING & PRAYING

Manon Fiorot Wins By Decision (-150)
Drew Dober Wins By KO/TKO (+100)
Azamat Bekoev (-300)
Total Odds: +344

Some five months after she fell short in her bid to unseat Valentina Shevchenko, Fiorot’s road back to another title shot at 125 pounds begins with a compelling showdown against Jasmine Jasudavicius. The unanimous decision loss to Shevchenko at UFC 315 in May snapped a remarkable 12-fight winning streak for the Frenchwoman, who had bullied her way past Rose Namajunas and Erin Blanchfield to become the division’s No. 1 contender. Fiorot has not been much of a finisher at the sport’s highest level, as each of her past six fights has gone the distance. That trend figures to continue here. Stock in Jasudavicius has never been more valuable, with the Canadian grappler having rattled off five straight victories. Even so, she faces an uphill climb against Fiorot—a woman who has stopped 21 of the 24 takedown attempts levied against her.

Almost all the questions surrounding Dober involve the harsh weight cut at 155 pounds and whether or not the tread on his tires has worn too thin. The Elevation Fight Team product heads into his lightweight prelim against Kyle Prepolec on the first three-fight losing streak of his 16-year career. Dober has not visited victory lane since he took out Ricky Glenn with first-round punches at UFC Fight Night 229 two years ago, making this a must-win proposition for the Omaha, Nebraska native. On the other side of the ledger, Prepolec has yet to prove he belongs in the UFC and fell to 0-3 inside the Octagon with a submission loss to the aforementioned St. Denis in May. This encounter should tell us a great deal about where both men stand in the lightweight pecking order.

Finally, Bekoev aims to continue his ascent toward relevance in the middleweight division when he meets Dana White’s Contender Series graduate and promotional newcomer Yousri Belgaroui as part of the UFC Vancouver undercard. Most indicators point to a potential blowout. A former Legacy Fighting Alliance champion, Bekoev has won eight fights in a row, the last three via knockout. He boasts 16 finishes among his 20 professional victories, highlighted by first-round routs of Zachary Reese and Ryan Loder inside the Octagon. Belgaroui (+240), meanwhile, needed two tries on DWCS to punch his ticket to the UFC. If anything, Bekoev should be a heavier favorite.