Jeremy Stephens forced out of November 7 UFC fight with Arnold Allen

UFC featherweight Jeremy Stephens has been forced out of his November 7 fight against Arnold Allen, MMA Junkie reports.

Stephens has been pulled from the fight due to an injury but the problem isn’t expected to take long for him to recover from, and the veteran is expected to return in late 2020 or early 2021. The fight would’ve given “Lil Heathen” the opportunity to bounce back from a run of five fights without a win dating all the way back to February 2018.

On the flip side, Arnold Allen holds an impressive 7-0 unbeaten run in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and hasn’t lost in MMA since June 2014.

Stephens’ one and only fight of 2020 thus far came against Calvin Kattar back in May, and while he did wind up losing that contest, he had an interesting line of thought before the bout took place which could also apply to his Allen showdown – if and when it gets rescheduled, that is.

“I was watching (Michael) Jordan in The Last Dance,” Stephens said (via MMA Junkie). “He goes up 2-0 against the Phoenix Suns. Then Charles Barkley in the third game, they were just a little bit more hungry. Jordan is up two games and he kind of lays off the gas a little bit. Charles Barkley had that hunger in that third game.

“You can’t stop that hunger,” Stephens added. “That will to win. I don’t think anybody has the will to win more than me. I love this sport. I love fighting. There’s nothing more than winning and getting that win. My will to win is super strong – my spirit, my soul (are) on fire right now.”

If Stephens is able to possess that kind of drive on a consistent basis, he may be able to revive his UFC career, but if he loses his next one or two fights, there’s a decent chance that the promotion will be forced to consider his future.

With that being said Jeremy Stephens has been a loyal member of the roster for well over a decade now, whereas Arnold Allen is also one to watch moving forward as he could quite easily become a title contender in the not so distant future.