The 27-year-old from Perth, Australia shocked many at UFC 299 as he finished #4 ranked Gilbert Burns in violent fashion. The Welterweight has been known to be one of the best strikers in the division, but he backed up against one of the best in the world for the first time. Maddalena showcased to more casual watchers his talent. For those wanting to read more about him, this article is for you.
Background
The Australian lost his first 2 MMA fights. This shows one of his best qualities which is his resilience and urge to fight back. He then went on a good run on local show Eternal MMA; winning 7 fights in a row. After this impressive form, he was offered a Dana White Contender Series bout in September 2021. Ange Loosa was his opponent, and he put on an impressive performance earning him a UFC contract.
UFC Career
The sensational run taking him to 7-0 in the UFC started at UFC 270 in January 2022. He put a beating on opponent Pete Rodriguez finishing him with a counter left hook in round 1. Another win would then come 5 months later winning via a liver punch. He put himself on the map, when he defeated Randy Brown in front of a packed-out home crowd in Melbourne. This put him up to 4-0 in the UFC and a chance to break the rankings.
Therefore, a bout with Sean Brady was booked but the American pulled out.Short notice, Bassil Hafez came in and gave the 27-year-old, a real test. Hafez looked dominant in the grappling exchanges but ended up gassing as a result of the body shots. Della Maddalena would win the fight but it didn’t help his reputation due to how close it was.
A bigger test would come next as ranked Kevin Holland would be his opponent. The two had a close cagey affair with the Aussie picking up the win via split decision. Fans expected more from this one as it did not deliver an end-to-end brawl.
Gilbert Burns would then be Della Maddalena’s final and most recent opponent as of writing. The Brazilian guaranteed to be his toughest test to date. His great grappling mixed in with impressive boxing gave the style of Maddalena issues. Burns would go on to pick up two competitive rounds on two scorecards with one giving the Aussie the first.
The corner of Maddalena spurred him on for a finish in the final round and he delivered. A perfectly timed knee lands on the chin of Burns dropping him. Ground and Pound then ensues and Dan Miragliotta is forced to step in. With the win over Burns, what does the future look like?
The Future
Jack called out Shavkat Rakhmonov for a title eliminator bout before the end of the year. The two of them along with Ian Garry look to be the future of the 170-pound division. A chance at fighting champion Leon Edwards would be perfect for both Maddalena and Rakhmonov, but who would win?
Despite, Shavkat’s very well-rounded game, JDM causes him problems on the feet connecting to both head and body with accurate punches. For the Australian to win, he would need to work on his grappling as that has posed issues previously and Rakhmonov would look to expose that weakness. A fight between the two would be exciting to see, who tests the gold standard at 170; Leon Edwards.
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