Jack Della Maddalena doesn’t expect Islam Makhachev to make the same error that Belal Muhammad made.
The main event of UFC 322 will feature a UFC Welterweight Championship clash. Titleholder Maddalena will be putting his gold at stake against Makhachev, who vacated the UFC Lightweight Championship for this opportunity. The matchup will take place inside Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Maddalena recently spoke to media members following a workout session, which was captured by Submission Radio. The 170-pound champion revealed a mistake that Muhammad made in their title fight back in May that he doesn’t feel Makhachev will make (h/t MMAJunkie).
“They’re different fighters, different challenges,” Della Maddalena said. “Obviously, there’s some similarities within the grappling style, but I definitely look at Islam as a completely different challenge – more of a finishing ability, more powerful on the feet, so different challenge, and I’m excited for it.
“It’s going to start on the feet, and we’ll go from there. I think he’s going to try and mix it up. I think he’ll probably try getting on wrestling early, I’d imagine. Looking back at the Belal fight, he probably sees that Belal’s mistake was maybe not getting on the wrestling early. Yeah, expecting the first round to be getting into some grappling exchanges.”
Makhachev is hoping to win his second UFC title before 2025 comes to a close. He had four successful lightweight title defenses before moving up a division. If Makhachev defeats Maddalena, he’ll become the first fighter since BJ Penn to hold UFC gold in both the lightweight and welterweight divisions.
Maddalena is looking to prove why he is the current welterweight ruler, and warns he isn’t someone to take lightly. Makhachev’s camp has admitted they feel Maddalena is a tough challenge given his standup and takedown defense. Still, Makhachev is confident that Maddalena won’t be able to avoid the grappling for long.
