UFC welterweight contender Jack Della Maddalena appears to have suggested he is set for the biggest fight of his career so far. He shared a story on his Instagram account that he is facing Kamaru Usman next.
Della Maddalena is considered by many to have the makings of a future champion, and has demonstrated such throughout his UFC career so far. The 28-year-old made his debut in the promotion back in 2022 and has won all seven of his bouts, most recently knocking out Gilbert Burns at UFC 299 earlier this year.
The Australian’s form has seen him climb to No.4 in the welterweight rankings, with many fans expecting he is one or two wins away from earning his first shot at UFC gold. Whilst he has yet to have his next bout officially confirmed, it appears as though he has an opponent in mind.
In his recent Instagram story, Jack Della Maddalena shared a report that he has verbally agreed to face Kamaru Usman at UFC 312 in Sydney, Australia.
Despite no official announcement by the UFC yet, it is certainly a fight that makes sense on paper. ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ is currently ranked No.2 in the division and has recently expressed his interest in having another run at the 170-pound title.
Craig Jones praises Jack Della Maddalena’s grappling skills
Despite being hailed as one of the UFC’s best boxers, Jack Della Maddalena also possesses an elite level of grappling, according to Craig Jones.
Jones is considered by many to be one of the world’s best grapplers, having won multiple grappling titles throughout his career. His work has also been touted by Alexander Volkanovski, with the pair having worked together since 2021.
Craig Jones recently appeared on episode #157 of the JRE MMA Show to discuss his grappling career, and he soon made a specific note of Della Maddalena. According to Jones, the 28-year-old’s grappling ability is so underrated, that he himself has actually stolen moves and techniques off of him. He explained:
“I steal moves off him. I remember when he went to the [Dana White’s] Contender Series, he hit a makikomi reversal in the first round of the Contender Series fight and I was blown away by his grappling. I’ve been watching it since. His reversal of Gilbert Burns was crazy. I’ve trained with him and I steal moves from him. He’s so good at grappling.”
