Arnold Allen is off UFC 333 after being scratched from his featherweight bout with Aaron Pico, MMA Fighting reported. Pico stays on the October 24 card at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi and now meets late replacement Losene Keita.
Sources told MMA Fighting the withdrawal is not a new injury. Allen has been rehabbing from earlier treatment and did not have enough time to get ready. The 32-year-old last fought in May, winning a decision over Melquizael Costa in Las Vegas.
Keita steps in days after a knockout win. The Belgian is 17-2 overall and 1-1 in the UFC after losing his debut to Lerone Murphy, then knocking out Muhammad Naimov. Pico is 14-5 and 1-1 in the UFC after a decision win over Patricio Pitbull at UFC 327.
The change lands on a two-title card. Alexander Volkanovski defends the UFC Featherweight Championship against undefeated Movsar Evloev in the main event. Petr Yan defends the UFC Bantamweight Championship against Merab Dvalishvili in their trilogy fight, which MMA News first detailed when the matchups were announced.
Evloev is 20-0 and earned the shot after beating Murphy in March. Ahead of the date he named Volkanovski his featherweight GOAT over Jose Aldo.
How To Watch UFC 333
UFC 333: Volkanovski vs. Evloev is set for Saturday, October 24, 2026 at Etihad Arena on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. In the United States it streams on Paramount+ with no traditional pay-per-view. Early prelims are listed at 10 a.m. ET, prelims at 12 p.m. ET, and the main card at 2 p.m. ET.
The announced main-card group also includes Lone’er Kavanagh vs. Ramazan Temirov at flyweight and Alexander Volkov vs. Rizvan Kuniev at heavyweight, plus the Pico-Keita replacement. Other booked bouts include Azamat Murzakanov vs. Dominick Reyes, Nikita Krylov vs. Abdul-Rakhman Yakhyaev, Abus Magomedov vs. Cam Rowston, and Grant Dawson vs. Nurullo Aliev. Bout order can still move before fight week.
