UFC 315 from Montreal had all of it — a brand new champion at welterweight, an excellent efficiency for an all-time nice, a legend laying down the gloves and extra.
In the primary occasion, Australia’s Jack Della Maddalena confirmed no concern of being Belal Muhammad‘s first title protection. He threw laborious pictures at Muhammad all evening whereas expertly avoiding his takedown makes an attempt. By the tip of the five-round battle, Della Maddalena ended up with the belt round his waist.
Girls’s flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko did what she had already finished seven occasions earlier than and efficiently defended her title in opposition to Manon Fiorot. It was a masterful efficiency that begs the query of the place she sits among the many biggest in MMA historical past.
And talking of biggest, Corridor of Famer José Aldo retired once more after dropping to Aiemann Zahabi, his second loss in three fights since he unretired final 12 months. Was the 12 months we received to observe him price it?
Jeff Wagenheim, Andreas Hale and Brett Okamoto share their ideas on these fights.
Deliver on the Della Maddalena-Makhachev superfight
Della Maddalena has become a UFC champion so rapidly that he barely had time to work his manner up the welterweight rankings. After becoming a member of the promotion in 2022, he was combating a top-5 opponent for the primary time on Saturday at UFC 315. However by way of championship aspirations, this was the one 170-pounder who really mattered: the champion. Della Maddalena dethroned Muhammad by beating him to the punch for 5 rounds, transferring to 8-0 within the UFC and increasing his total profitable streak to 18.
No sooner had Della Maddalena been handed the belt than the narrative moved on to his first title protection, which appears to be leaning within the path of light-weight champion Islam Makhachev in a champion versus champion superfight. Had Muhammad gained, the UFC would have gone in a unique path, as a result of Muhammad has skilled with Makhachev and the 2 had been against combating each other. However Della Maddalena eradicated that complication — and arrange what one would possibly characterize as a grudge match.
Della Maddalena is from Perth, Australia, making him the third UFC champion from Australia, after middleweight Robert Whittaker and featherweight Alexander Volkanovski. The latest champ will start his reign by attempting to get one again for Australia from Makhachev, the person who twice defeated Volkanovski.
“It is a ravishing problem. He is pound-for-pound No. 1,” Della Maddalena mentioned of Makhachev. “I am gonna get it again for Volk.”
If he does, there’ll nonetheless be welterweight challenges forward, initially the undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov, who was in line for this title shot however is recovering from harm.
Della Maddalena produced a wonderful efficiency in opposition to Muhammad, fueled primarily by his sharp boxing however aided by sturdy takedown protection. Muhammad, who had scored 9 takedowns whereas taking the title from Leon Edwards final July, managed solely three on 9 makes an attempt on this combat. That stored the combat in Della Maddalena’s hanging wheelhouse, the place he went to work and bloodied up Muhammad. Can he do this in opposition to Makhachev, who’s slick in each wrestling and standup? The percentages will certainly be in opposition to the brand new champion, however that is nothing new for a man who would not even have been right here if not for one more fighter’s harm — however confirmed emphatically that he belongs. — Wagenheim
Shevchenko makes one other problem look straightforward
1:03
Valentina Shevchenko dominates on her method to retaining belt in co-main occasion
Valentina Shevchenko dominates her match vs. Manon Fiorot within the co-main occasion of UFC 315 to retain the title.
It has gotten to the purpose that Shevchenko is being taken as a right as a result of her greatness is so acquainted. The 37-year-old endured a grueling struggle of attrition to retain her flyweight title in opposition to Fiorot, proving she continues to be the queen of the mountain. Her stellar profession has been so chic {that a} win over yet one more contender is handled as routine. However Shevchenko halted Fiorot’s 12-fight profitable streak and added one other identify to her portfolio. She continues so as to add to her record-breaking profession together with her tenth title combat win, tying Nunes for probably the most in UFC girls’s historical past. To not point out that she is now the oldest fighter to defend a title at a weight class decrease than welterweight.
The expectation is that she’s going to welcome the problem of strawweight champion Zhang Weili subsequent. A win over one other lady thought-about one of many greats will inch her nearer to Amanda Nunes as the best girls’s combined martial artist of all time. Shevchenko is usually forgotten as the girl who pushed Nunes to the restrict twice, regardless of combating nicely above her most popular weight class.
With Nunes anticipated to come back out of retirement to combat the winner of the ladies’s bantamweight title combat between Julianna Peña and Kayla Harrison at UFC 316 on June 7, there may very well be a situation during which Nunes and Shevchenko meet for a 3rd time with greater than only a world championship on the road.
The dream situation would see Shevchenko defend her title in opposition to Zhang and get one final shot at Nunes if she will regain the bantamweight crown. However even when the latter does not come to fruition — and there are lots of hurdles to get there — Shevchenko has cemented herself as an all-time nice. — Hale
What was the UFC attempting with Aldo’s comeback?
Relating to combat promotion, the UFC is sheer ingenuity, OK? Nobody can debate that. The UFC has been rising exponentially for years, and Dana White’s imaginative and prescient for the corporate has been confirmed true time and again. That mentioned, I do not get what occurred with Jose Aldo.
The Brazilian legend got here out of retirement final 12 months for another run, and the promotion ended up reserving him in opposition to Jonathan Martinez, Mario Bautista and Zahabi. Now, full credit score to all three of these fighters, however did any of them really construct his model after combating Aldo? Martinez misplaced, Bautista gained a sluggish break up choice and Zahabi gained a really enjoyable combat, however not in a manner that can really put him over the hump. In different phrases, the followers received one of the crucial beloved names within the sport again, and he truly had some gasoline left within the tank, however now that he has re-retired after the loss to Zahabi, what did the followers actually get from his return?
If this comeback was solely going to final 12 months, could not the UFC have thought greater? I do know Dominick Cruz ended up not combating once more due to an harm earlier this 12 months throughout camp, however the firm might have tried to e-book that one. I do perceive utilizing him like anybody else, reserving him in opposition to a quantity (a ranked opponent) as a substitute of a reputation, but additionally, I do not. The matchmaking was adequate, however is that every one we wish for Aldo? I’d have slightly seen the UFC discover a method to get him within the Octagon with Sean O’Malley, who Aldo won’t have beat, however he confirmed he had sufficient to make it aggressive. There would have been a payoff, win or lose.
I suppose any manner the UFC went, the outcome would have been related, however it felt like there was a possibility to do one thing extra significant. A uncommon slip up by the promotion. — Okamoto
