Top-15 Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Featherweights are headed to “Sin City.”
No. 8-ranked Arnold Allen will put his spot in the rankings on the line against surging Brazilian Melquizael Costa in the main event of UFC Vegas 117 on Sat., May 16, 2026, inside the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JANUARY 24: Arnold Allen of England prepares to face Jean Silva of Brazil in a featherweight bout during the UFC 324 event at T-Mobile Arena on January 24, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)
After starting his UFC career on absolute fire — winning his first 10 fights inside the Octagon — Allen (20-4) now finds himself in a difficult stretch. The 32-year-old British fighter has lost three of his last four bouts, though those defeats came against elite competition in Max Holloway, Movsar Evloev, and, most recently, Jean Silva at UFC 324 earlier this year.
Now Allen will attempt to halt his skid against one of the hottest fighters in the division in what will be his third UFC main event appearance.
HOUSTON, TEXAS - FEBRUARY 21: Melquizael Costa advances against Dan Ige exchange strikes in a featherweight bout during UFC Fight Night at Toyota Center on February 21, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Jack Gorman/Getty Images
Costa (26-7) has been on an impressive run of his own after dropping two of his first three UFC appearances via stoppage. “The Dalmatian” has since rattled off six straight wins, four of them by finish (like this one).
In his most recent outing at UFC Houston, the 29-year-old Brazilian became the first fighter to stop Dan Ige in his entire career, knocking him out with a brutal spinning back kick in the opening round (watch highlights)
UFC Vegas 117 will mark Costa’s first UFC main event.
The only other fight currently reported for the May 16 card is a women’s Bantamweight matchup between Ketlen Vieira and Jacqueline Cavalcanti.
I want Jean Silva vs Yair. They could just absolutely beat the penguin sht out of each other. I cant stand either one of them.
Arnold seems to choke under the bright lights if the bigger fights. I dont have an opinion either way on Costa. Hes been lighting it up in his last 2 tho. I think its a good fight and will say a lot about where each other are. Allen is stuck in the gate keeper role for now.
Sick fight. Milky is crazy underrated and been red hot.
Light heavyweights Modestas Bukauskas and Rodolfo Bellato have agreed to meet at the upcoming UFC Vegas 117 card on May 16 at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas.
Multiple people with knowledge of the promotion’s plans confirmed the news to MMA Fighting on Tuesday, with agreements in place for both fighters.
Following a four-fight winning streak that included a knockout over Paul Craig, Bukauskas saw his momentum come to a halt after he suffered a knockout loss to Nikita Krylov at UFC 324 in May.
Before that setback, Bukauskas was on a 6-1 run since returning to the UFC following a one-year absence from the promotion, where he picked up a pair of wins in Cage Warriors. Now, Bukauskas attempts to get back on track when he fights in May.