UFC featherweight Arnold Allen (12-1) is 3-0 in the promotion, but he’s in a different kind of fight right now. Allen, who is coming off a win against Makwan Amirkhani at UFC Fight Night 107 in London earlier this year, has been handed a suspended sentence of five months in jail by an Ipswich judge after pleading guilty to charges stemming from Christmas party brawl last year. The suspended sentence means Allen will escape doing actual time assuming he stays out of trouble.
The incident took place at All Manor of Events in Henley, near Ipswich, the night of December 23 last year, and spilled over into the wee hours of December 24. The Ipswitch Star quotes Recorder Richard Christie QC (a recorder is akin to a judge in British legal terms) noting that Allen had originally gotten involved in an altercation to protect his girlfriend during a confrontation with another woman.
However, after that, “you essentially ran amok,” the judge stated. He then admonished the fighter, saying “Part of your training is self-control and knowing when not to exert more force than is necessary, and that’s plainly something you have done on this occasion.”
According to reports, after the initial altercation where Allen stepped in to protect his girlfriend, he began “windmilling” punches, and assaulted venue owner Andrew Hayward-Farmer, who had warned Allen about his behavior earlier in the evening.
In total, Allen assaulted six women while windmilling and flailing away. His lawyer, Richard Conley, stated that Allen had “gone into complete protection mode” and “abandoned all other considerations. His only consideration was to come to the aid of his girlfriend.” He also noted that the fighter was not used to consuming alcohol due to his training.
Allen was fined £3,250 in addition to his suspended sentence, given 150 of “unpaid work” (community service), and must abide by a home curfew of 9PM to 7AM for a month.
The fighter may want to avoid parties that include an “Oompa Lumpa party with some people dressed in character” in future. This could cost him further, as a criminal record may impede international travel. Allen spends time in Canada, training with renowned gym TriStar.
