Australian Welterweight prospect Jack Della Maddalena has picked his ideal next fight if Shavkat Rakhmonov is not ready for UFC 305
Jack Della Maddalena believes he is one win away from a title fight after his TKO victory over Gilbert Burns at UFC 299. The Australian Kickboxer is not shying away from anyone calling for a title eliminator against “the best” undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov after finishing Burns.
Though he extended his UFC winning streak to seven he sustained a setback at UFC 299 breaking his arm early in the fight. This injury has him out for 12 weeks as he recovers from surgery.
Jack Della Maddalena’s Eyes Next Opponent in Potentially Huge Bout
‘Nomad’ Shavkat Rakhmonov is a well-rounded 18-0 fighter from Kazakhstan who has been tearing through the Welterweight division. The Kazakhstan fighter is yet to hear a judges scorecard with a 100% finish record (8 KO – 10 SUB) putting on shows against Neal Magny, Geoff Neal and becoming the first man to submit Stephen Thompson.
He has proved to be somewhat of an unstoppable force in the UFC only wavering against Geoff Neal. Their “Fight of the Year” contender brawl saw both men pushed to their limits ultimately ending in a late-standing rear-naked choke for ‘Nomad’. Even though Shavkat came out victorious Neal showed that though well-rounded, Rakhmonov can be tested with some slick boxing, which Jack Della has in abundance.
Rakhmonov has not been as active as Maddalena through no fault of his own with few Welterweights being keen to face him. For Jack Della Maddalena to shoot his shot against the Kazakh prospect it shows how confident he is in his abilities.
“I like Shavkat’s style so I’ve always wanted to fight him, I think he’s the best and it’s a pretty challenging fight.”
Jack Della Maddalena Lines up Title Eliminator Fight With Former Champ as Alternative
The UFC makes its return to Perth Australia for UFC 305 in August, being Maddalena’s home nation he is keen to get on the card. The last time the UFC went to Perth Jack Della Maddalena showed out with a submission win over Randy Brown in the first round.
If Rakhmonov is not fit in time for August then Maddalena is keen to get his hands on former Welterweight champion ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ Kamaru Usman.
“From what I heard he (Rakhmonov) may have had an injury but he was good to go in August so we’re sort of in the same boat. Maybe Kamaru Usman (as a backup plan) that’d be fun.”
Kamaru Usman came up short in his last fight at UFC 294 against Khamzat Chimaev. This fight took place at 185lbs in which Usman stepped up on short notice to replace Middleweight Paulo Costa.
It is currently unclear whether ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ will continue to pursue two-division greatness at middleweight or will return to welterweight. If he were to agree to fight Maddalena in August it is undeniable that beating the calibre of Usman puts Maddalena next in line for a welterweight title shot.
UFC president Dana White announced last week that the UFC will be returning to the UK in July with two British champions headlining the event meaning UFC Welterweight gold will be on the line. Though welterweight Champion Leon Edwards does not yet have an opponent it is likely that it will be a rematch against Belal Muhammad.
Taking place in July this makes the Aussies’ dream UFC 305 title eliminator scrap in August all the more plausible.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
