Islam Makhachev sends chilling message to Jack Della Maddalena ahead of UFC 322 showdown

A recently shared video from Umar Nurmagomedov showed Makhachev deep into training, being asked about his plans to rest. “Tired, huh?” The young bantamweight asks according to a translation from Red Corner MMA. “Take a break.”

Makhachev then eerily replies that “November 16, I will rest”. The fight takes place on November 15 at the iconic Madison Square Garden, and is co-headlined by another challenger coming up in weight as Valentina Shevchenko defends her flyweight belt against Weili Zhang.

Jack Della Maddalena must channel Dustin Poirier to beat Islam Makhachev says UFC star

Former flyweight title contender Steve Erceg has been aware of the incredible talent of Della Maddalena for years. They came up together on the Australian scene, and have been very complimentary of one another in their respective pursuits of UFC gold.

“I’ve known for a very long time that Jack is an amazing fighter,” Erceg told Bloody Elbow in an exclusive chat. “He’s really good and he shocked me on how good he was. He handled the grappling exchanges so well and it’s the best striking performance I’ve seen from him.

“The big moment, he rose to the occasion, it was fantastic to see. I do think that the grappling from Islam, he’s a better technical grappler than Belal is but he’s not quite as big. He’s not as imposing.”

Erceg believes that the performance to watch when it comes to how to stifle Makhachev is Dustin Poirier’s effort last year, which while unsuccessful went a lot better than planned.

“If you look at the Dustin Poirier fight, Dustin was able to stop some of his takedowns and win some scrambles and stuff like that. I think not only will Jack be able to do that, but when he lands punches, it’s going to be way more devastating.”