The main event at UFC 315 between Jack Della Maddalena and Belal Muhammad may have earned both fighters a Performance of the Night bonus, but one top contender in the welterweight division wasn’t entirely impressed.
Della Maddalena (18-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC) defeated Muhammad (24-4 MMA, 15-4 UFC) to capture the UFC welterweight title Saturday night at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec. Ian Machado Garry (16-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC), who served as the official backup fighter for the bout, views himself as the rightful next challenger—unless lightweight champion Islam Makhachev (27-1 MMA, 16-1 UFC) follows through on his plan to move up to 170 pounds.
"You have a new champion in Jack Della Maddalena. He had a great performance, but sloppy," Machado Garry said in a video posted on his Instagram account. "The rumor is that Islam Makhachev is moving up to 170. If he does, then all of us welterweights have to take a step back and give the man respect he deserves. But if negotiations don't go so well, then you have a tall, blonde Irishman who's ready to take over the UFC and get that belt and I will smoke Jack Della Maddalena. I'll box the ears off him."
Leading up to UFC 315, Ian Machado Garry predicted that Belal Muhammad’s wrestling would be the deciding factor in the fight. However, the bout largely played out on the feet—something that came as a surprise to the Irishman.
"I was wrong. Jack Della Maddalena is the new champion in the division because Belal didn't shoot any takedowns. Mental, I know," Machado Garry said. "So here are the matchups I think we should see in the UFC welterweight division:
"I want to see Carlos prates take on Geoff Neal: two heavy hitters, two big southpaws. That's a fight I'm interested in to see. Then Leon Edwards – he's always moaning and complaining: 'I don't want to fight any wrestlers. I want to fight strikers.' Then let's give him the most awkward striker in the entire UFC in Michael 'Venom' Page. That's a fight I'd like to watch."
