Robert Whittaker believes Jack Della Maddalena has what it takes to snap Islam Makhachev’s winning streak.
Della Maddalena (18-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC) will look to make the first successful defense of his UFC welterweight title when he faces former lightweight champion Makhachev (27-1 MMA, 16-1 UFC) in the main event of UFC 322 on November 15.
When the two square off at Madison Square Garden in New York, it will have been more than ten years since Makhachev last suffered a defeat inside the Octagon—his knockout loss to Adriano Martins at UFC 192.
Since then, Makhachev has rattled off 15 straight victories, including multiple title-fight wins at 155 pounds, before vacating the belt earlier this year to move up and challenge for Della Maddalena’s welterweight strap.
Former UFC middleweight champion Whittaker insists that Della Maddalena—who is riding an 18-fight winning streak of his own—has the tools to hand Makhachev his first loss in over a decade.
“I'm going to go (with) Jack,” Whittaker said on his MMArcade Podcast this week when asked for his prediction on how the UFC 322 main event will play out. “I think Jack has that X factor. I think he has the gut, the grit, the determination to fight the takedowns, to fight the ground, the takedown attacks that Islam is going to go for. And I think in a striking fight straight up, Jack is better. I think he wins.
“I think Jack's got the better game to strike over five rounds than Islam does as well. Especially if Islam is trying to go for takedowns during the fight. I think people sleep on Jack's grappling game. They sleep on his Jiu Jitsu. I don't think Islam is going to be as gung-ho with the takedowns as everybody believes because Jack has that level of offense off his back.”
The Roadmap To Challenging Makhachev
One of the toughest tests of Makhachev’s career came at UFC 284, when featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski moved up to challenge for the lightweight title.
Despite being undersized, the Australian pushed Makhachev to the limit, ultimately dropping a razor-close decision on the judges’ scorecards. Although Volkanovski would go on to suffer a knockout loss in their immediate rematch, Whittaker believes that first meeting offered enough clues for Della Maddalena to map out a path to victory when he faces Makhachev in November.
“From the things that I remember seeing in the Volk fight, their first pairing, I just see the fight potentially going (Della Maddalena’s) way,” Whittaker said. “But I think Jack's in a better position to take advantage of the things that Volk couldn't. I think he's got better hands, especially over five rounds with the longer arms and the reach. Especially considering Islam's going to be trying to close that distance to get closer. Jack's tight fighting is so high level. Honestly, skill-wise, I think they both have their strengths. I don't think either one of them is overly superior in any which way. Yes, Islam would be a better wrestler, but Jack has the grappling to kind of threaten that. Not to mention, I think he's got the type boxing to make him pay for anything he doesn't pull off well.
“I do think Islam has got the kick superiority. If Jack doesn't address that, which he hasn't in a lot of his fights, the kicks— he's going to get kicked a lot. Islam likes throwing kicks. He used that very well against Volk as well. I think that's going to be a game plan of Islam: to try and wear him down with those kicks, take a takedown when they see him, but I can see him really going heavy in the kicks. External factors aside as well, Jack has nothing to lose. I think Islam's got everything to lose. He's the hottest prospect right now in MMA.”
