UK MMA Featherweight Arnold Allen is one of Europe's top prospects. In our continuing quest to help domestic fighters and build the grassroots of the sport, we have partnered with the Cage Warriors fighter and are glad to welcome him aboard the team at Fightstore Pro.
Stay tuned tuned FS Pro on Facebook and Twitter for all the updates. You can find Arnold at @ArnoldBFA.
Here's Arnold introducing himself, and we'll be seeing a lot more of him on the blog in the coming months. If there are any topics you'd like him to discuss then give him a shout on Twitter!
Martial arts has always been a part of my life in one way or another. Growing up I always watched Bruce Lee films with my brother we used to practise things from his films on each other.
I had a short stint at kickboxing as a kid, then moved over to amateur boxing where I became Eastern Counties champion, and moved into the quarter finals of the ABA championships. My coach pulled me out of the fight for reasons I couldn't understand. Being a bit young and stupid I thought that was it for boxing and took up BJJ at a local gym, then naturally progressed into a mixed martial artist.
Where I first started training there was no such thing as wrestling. It was a huge shock when I moved to BKK and started training under Jack Mason, I knew that's where I had to be to improve.
Allen in the BKK Fighters gym with coach Jack Mason
Under Jack I went 7-0 as an amateur before turning pro not long after my 18th birthday. For me winning by KO in my professional debut was a huge thing, there's not much that competes with that feeling!
Three years on I feel like I have built a well rounded game. I was recently awarded my purple belt from Braulio Estima thanks to Lee Catling, which was an amazing feeling. I didn't enjoy the whipping too much though!
So far I'm happy with what I've done but I'm not satisfied with where I'm at. I'm going to keep working my ass off to make sure I do much more and go a lot further in the coming years.
Allen wins at CWFC 71, via Cage Warriors/Dolly Clew
I've had six fights with Cage Warriors going 5-1. I dropped a tough decision to Marcin Wroszek which I learnt a lot from. This was a real turning point in my career, it made me a better fighter. Before the fight I felt I had already won, which was my biggest mistake. Since then I have won two fights over tough opposition which I am happy with, but there's still lots of improvements to be made!
I'm extremely happy to have the support of Fightstore Pro - they work with some really talented guys, current and future stars, it's great to be a part of it. Plus, they always have great blogs and articles to read about the mixed martial arts world.