Jack Della Maddalena welcomes a striking battle with Belal Muhammad, even if he doesn’t expect their fight to play out that way.
The Australian slugger gets his shot at Muhammad’s welterweight title when they meet in the main event of UFC 315 in Montreal, Canada, on May 10. Della Maddalena has won 17 straight fights since beginning his career 0-2, collecting a number of highlight-reel knockouts along the way.
Muhammad isn’t as well known for his back-and-forth standup battles, so Della Maddalena thinks fans could be in for a dull night if the champion has his way.
“There’s no question he’s got a boring fight style,” Della Maddalena told Fox Sports Australia. “He’s good at holding people down, getting victories. Fair play to him. [Georges St-Pierre] got some flack back in the day for being a boring style, and it’s just because he’s just better at people across the board. He can hold down the strikers, he can out-strike the grapplers, that sort of thing, so you’ve got to give him credit.
“I definitely think it’s a boring style, but winning is obviously his number one goal and fair play to him, but I feel like I can beat him. I’m the more dangerous fighter for sure, and I think I can not only get the world title, but get the world title off a dominant finish with style points, for sure.”
Muhammad claimed the welterweight title this past July at UFC 304 with a grinding—and undeniably effective—grappling-heavy decision victory over Leon Edwards. He’s shown a willingness to strike in the past, but “Remember the Name” typically prefers to bully his opponents on the ground rather than trade punches in the pocket.
Della Maddalena hopes Muhammad considers meeting the challenger on his terms, at least at first.
“I think he’ll dip the toes in the striking, and then he might think, ‘I’m just better off getting the win,’” Della Maddalena said. “I think he’s obviously a competitive guy, so he’ll dip the toes, he’ll get hurt, and then I think he’ll revert back to what he thinks is the best, easiest method to victory.”
Few fighters become world champions by being completely one-dimensional, so Della Maddalena isn’t underestimating any part of Muhammad’s game. But he feels he has the edge in a striking battle.
“I think he’s fast,” Della Maddalena said. “I wouldn’t say he’s dangerous. I definitely think he’s fast, but I don’t think it’s very dangerous striking. He’s just good at being fast, and I think his threat of the takedown makes his striking better.”
TOP STORIES
Results. Jason Jackson put Andrey Koreshkov to sleep, advances to semifinals at PFL 1.
Management. Henry Cejudo suggests Khabib Nurmagomedov could be the reason Islam Makhachev doesn’t fight Ilia Topuria.
Stoppage. Drew Dober reacts to controversial stoppage in UFC Mexico fight: ‘The lights were on, but nobody was home.’
Troll. Aljamain Sterling trolls Sean O’Malley over UFC 316 rematch, suggests trilogy if Merab Dvalishvili wins again.
Beef. Alexander Volkov dismisses Jailton Almeida fight rumor, Almeida responds.
Injury. Fabricio Werdum withdraws from inaugural GFL season following Frank Mir injury.
Eliminator. Brandon Royval fights Manel Kape at UFC 317.
Out. Kennedy Nzechukwu out of UFC Vegas 105, Martin Buday gets a new opponent.
VIDEO STEW
Between the Links.
Submission Radio had some dirtbags on.
Truly an insane time.
Why.
SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE
Merab Dvalishvili is trying to hype a fight no one cares about.
Cut it out MFckrs - go back to talking sh*t. I need to be mad about you again pic.twitter.com/KZuN9zPegK
— Merab “The Machine” Dvalishvili (@MerabDvalishvil) April 4, 2025
Free Patchy.
Imagine this guy in the @ufc bantamweight division is already + @TeamMixMMA https://t.co/L8e0H07RSR
— GILBERT BURNS DURINHO (@GilbertDurinho) April 3, 2025
Disappointing.
Wife turned down my name idea for the son “Ryder Dye Pettis” and I’m honestly devastated
— Sergio Pettis (@sergiopettis) April 3, 2025
Champ.
Down goes Jack https://t.co/Kvc137N7Se
— Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) April 3, 2025
Bet.
Oh it’s on. https://t.co/VPuaUelGYk
— Kayla Harrison Official (@KaylaH) April 3, 2025
Nasty KO.
Thad Jean (9-0), originally an alternate, enters the tournament and FLATLINES former ACB champ Mukhamed Berkhamov. That's how you make a name for yourself. #PFLWorldTournament pic.twitter.com/DM2RtMwEOR
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) April 4, 2025
FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS
Martin Buday (14-2) vs. Uran Satybaldiev (9-0); UFC Vegas 105, April 5.
Muhammad Mokaev vs. Bolat Zamanbekov; Karate Combat 54, May 2
Brandon Royval (17-7) vs. Manel Kape (21-7); UFC 317, June 28.
FINAL THOUGHTS
It’s fair to say that Belal Muhammad, despite his impressive résumé, isn’t the most popular UFC champion. I’m curious how much fan sentiment—and the odds—will turn to Jack Della Maddalena’s favor as UFC 315 approaches.
We still have UFC 314 and a handful of Fight Night cards to get through before the welterweight title is next contested, but how Muhammad is received as he heads into his first main event as champion is definitely a storyline to keep an eye on. — Lee
EXIT POLL
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