WATCH | Brendan Allen tells Paul Craig to “bring the same energy” at UFC Vegas 82 and to not “pull guard” in intense faceoff

Brendan Allen and Paul Craig had an intense final faceoff ahead of their UFC Vegas 82 main event fight.

Allen enters the fight as a sizeable betting favorite, but in the lead-up, both have been oozing with confidence that they will finish one another. At the faceoff, Craig got right into Allen’s face, so the American told him to keep the same energy on fight night and not just be pulling guard which is a move Craig does often.

"Bro, just bring that same energy tomorrow. Don’t be pulling guard." pic.twitter.com/SFu2TjOcUe

— Oscar Willis (@oscarswillis) November 17, 2023

“Bro, just bring the same energy tomorrow, we’re gonna fight tomorrow, don’t worry. Don’t be pulling guard,” Allen said in the faceoff.

After Brendan Allen’s comments, Paul Craig can’t be heard in the video, so it’s uncertain if he said anything or if he remained quiet while the American told him to keep the same energy on fight night.

Brendan Allen (22-5) enters his main event spot riding a five-fight win streak and coming off a first-round submission victory over Bruno Silva back in June at UFC Jacksonville. Allen is currently ranked 10th at middleweight and on the win streak, he also beat Andre Muniz, Krzysztof Jotko, Jacob Malkoun, and Sam Alvey.

Allen is 10-2 in the UFC with his two losses coming by knockout to Sean Strickland and Chris Curtis, but both fights he took on short notice. He also holds notable wins over Kevin Holland, and Punahele Soriano among others.

Paul Craig (17-6-1), meanwhile, is set for his second fight at middleweight and is coming off a second-round TKO over Andre Muniz back in July in his 185lbs debut. The victory over Muniz snapped his two-fight losing streak as Craig was TKO’d by Johnny Walker and dropped a decision to Volkan Oezdemir.

Craig is currently 9-6-1 in the UFC and set for his first main event spot at UFC Vegas 82 against Brendan Allen. In his UFC tenure, he holds notable wins over Jamahal Hill, Magomed Ankalaev, and Shogun Rua among others.