Islam Makhachev Gets Bad News From Jack Della Maddalena as Ex-UFC Champ’s Hopes Get Squashed

“Pound-for-pound No. 1—he’s the guy at the moment. So it’d be a dream come true to take him out and take his spot,” Jack Della Maddalena said on ESPN after his win over Belal Muhammad at UFC 315. The Aussie has been oozing confidence that he’s the one to beat Islam Makhachev. Having already faced a man with incredible grappling in the promotion, he doesn’t seem intimidated by the challenge of taking on another.

Seeing ‘JDM’s indomitable self-belief, the question naturally arises: what makes him so confident? Well, he’s proven himself to be a wrecking ball in the Octagon. But the Dagestani juggernaut has been steamrolling his opponents just as relentlessly. Fans are expecting a real showdown because the reigning champ believes Makhachev won’t look as good at 170 lbs.

Jack Della Maddalena thinks Islam Makhachev is 100% beatable in welterweight

It’s no secret that Islam Makhachev cuts a significant amount of weight to make the 155-pound limit. Many, including Joe Rogan, have stated that the Dagestani champ should have already moved up to the 170-pound division. But Della Maddalena believes his future opponent won’t be able to move as well once he packs on the extra muscle during fight prep.

During the Grin Reaper podcast, ‘JDM’ said, “Obviously, the next one would be even more media. It’s gonna be a big fight for the year. He’s beatable, though, 100%. I definitely can see. Maybe I’m not sure. But, his whole UFC career, he has been a lightweight. He’ll be puffier. He’ll have to holding in the fight. He’ll get tired.”

It’s well and good that Australian camp is coming into this superfight with a mental edge that their fighter is the bigger out of two. But ultimately, it will all depend on how Islam’s weight cut goes and how his body responds inside the cage. The 155-pound goat is backed by a team of experts who focus on balancing agility with strength, adding even more intrigue to this highly anticipated fight. 

Della Maddalena’s ability to nearly neutralize Belal Muhammad’s takedowns will definitely be a key factor if he faces Islam next. However, his last fight has faced some criticism, with Julianna Pena arguing that ‘Remember the Name’ didn’t truly lose that fight.

Julianna Pena thinks Maddalena lost his last fight against Belal Muhammad

Expectations were low heading into the UFC 315 main event, but Jack Della Maddalena and Belal Muhammad delivered a five-round war. JDM landed 178 significant strikes compared to his opponent’s 132. The Aussie also fended off six of nine takedown attempts and secured the win via unanimous decision. However, Julianna Pena believes her teammate was outright “robbed” by the judges. 

Pena at the UFC 316 media day said, “I didn’t think Belal lost. I watched that fight and was like ‘Yeah, we got it! He won!’, and then when they called it for the other guy, kudos to him, but I thought Belal won. I didn’t really give him any pep talk except for the fact that I said ‘Sorry my brother, you got robbed’.”

It has to be acknowledged that the fight wasn’t the one-sided beatdown some have made it out to be. Belal got tagged hard in the later rounds, but a few rounds were pretty close. In the end, though, JDM’s stats and overall performance earned him the victory. Pena is just doing her job as a supportive teammate, but the champ right now is the guy from Down Under.

With all the buzz building around the Jack Della Maddalena vs. Islam Makhachev fight, the big question remains: who do you think will come out on top when they finally face off? Drop your thoughts in the comments below!

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