“You are not Volk, I will show you different level. Keep my belt clean,” Islam Makhachev set the tone with his callout post on X for the potential super-fight. Jack Della Maddalena’s triumphant victory over Belal Muhammad garnered major attention. The Aussie is enjoying the glory of becoming champion, but he knows another mammoth challenge lies ahead. Time will run out quickly, as this anticipated clash is coming. Daniel Cormier has a message as he prepares the new champion for war.

Della Maddalena has already accepted the mission to avenge his countryman Alexander Volkanovski with a scrap against Makhachev in Perth. After his victory, he had a backstage exchange with UFC head honcho Dana White, asking, “Makhachev’s next, right? In Perth?” to which White replied, “We’ll get this figured out.” The UFC typically returns to Australia in the latter half of August, which is definitely not far off, setting the stage for a blockbuster showdown.

So, before this super-fight comes to fruition, Daniel Cormier provided him a reminder that Islam Makhachev will be a challenge and a half, and there’s not much time for the new champ to celebrate his win, because the Aussie right away got a stellar match-up for him.

‘DC’ in his YouTube video said, “He fought a wonderful fight. And now, he’s the UFC welterweight champion. And, you would think if you get a big win like that, there’s a lot of time to celebrate. But, unfortunately for Jack Della, right away he gets Islam Makahchev. The UFC said the other day in the press conference, Jack Della wins, Makhachev would go up and fight Jack Della Maddlena for the welterweight championship of the world.”

Della Maddalena definitely fought an awesome fight with a tight game plan. However, the Dagestani juggernaut is a different beast, and he’ll need to get back to training soon. It’s not just about defeating Makhachev on his home turf, a feat Volkanovski couldn’t accomplish, but also about the pound-for-pound rankings. Daniel Cormier believes that with a win over the current 155 lbs kingpin, ‘JDM’ will climb those rankings fast.

He added, “Number one pound-for-pound fighter in the world, and Della Maddalena will fly up those pound-for-pound rankings. This is an undefeated guy in the UFC. A guy that hasn’t lost in 18 straight fights now. A guy that’s been carrying the confidence of beating a guy like Belal Muhammad. If there’s a guy to fight, before Islam. It’s a guy like Belal who wrestles and uses it as his main tool! And, able to defend that way Jack Della did.” 

That’s correct! ‘JDM’ getting the win over Belal Muhammad gives him a ton of confidence heading into a clash with Makhachev. On the other hand, it’s also true that the Dagestani juggernaut’s wrestling is vastly different from Belal’s. He blends Jiu-Jitsu, Sambo, and several other disciplines with his freestyle wrestling. That means Della Maddalena will need a completely different approach from his last fight. And that’s exactly what makes this match-up even more intriguing.

Many are still preferring the current lightweight champion’s sheer MMA prowess to the current welterweight champion’s pure boxing skills. However, a former UFC fighter and a respected analyst thinks otherwise. So, let’s hear what he has to say. 

Dan Hardy believes Jack Della Maddalena will be too tough for Islam Makhachev

Although Ilia Topuria vs Islam Makhachev was the fight that got a ton of traction from the fans as one of the biggest super fights of this year. But, he vs Jack Della Maddalena is slowly catching up the heat in terms of hype. The strengths and weaknesses of each fighter have already become a matter of dispute among fans and experts. So, a coveted analyst like Dan Hardy has also voiced his opinion. 

During an interview with Submission Radio, Hardy said, “I think Della Maddalena has a bright future. I don’t know if he’s going to hold the belt or if he’s going to lose it to one of the top contenders and then pick it back up again. I don’t think he’s going to lose it to Makhachev, though. Della Maddalena looked very, very sharp against Belal, and I wonder what Makhachev would look like as a welterweight.”

We all wonder what Islam will look like as a welterweight. He’s one of the biggest lightweights who cuts a significant amount of weight before fights. So, he’s expected to gain power while maintaining his agility inside the cage. However, Hardy still has his doubts. 

He added, “Whether he would look as strong and as lean, or whether he’d look heavier and potentially gas himself out because he’d be stepping straight into a five-round fight.” That’s a fair assessment, because we still don’t know. Then, providing that he has been preparing for this super fight, the preparation is also going to be tailored by the AKA team. 

With that being said, do you think we’re going to witness Islam Makhachev vs Jack Della Maddalena soon? Please share your thoughts in the comment box below.