Arnold Allen (21-4) has pulled out of his UFC 333 fight against Aaron Pico (14-5) as he continues to rehab from previous treatments and will not be ready in time for the October 24 card.
Allen returned in 2026 after missing all of 2025 with injury, going 1-1 this year. He most recently defeated Melquizael Costa by unanimous decision in May after losing to Jean Silva in January.
The Pico fight would have marked Allen’s third appearance of 2026, which would have been his first three-fight year since 2014.
Losene Keita (17-2) has stepped in to replace Allen against Pico at UFC 333 in Abu Dhabi.
Pico, a former Bellator standout, is 1-1 since joining the UFC and is coming off a decision victory over Patricio Pitbull. Keita is also 1-1 in the promotion and earned his first UFC victory earlier this month with a first-round knockout of Muhammad Naimov at UFC Paris.
UFC 333 is headlined by featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski defending his title against undefeated No. 1 contender Movsar Evloev.