Israel Adesanya was hyped to see newly-crowned UFC welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena get over the hump.
Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya got to watch as another Oceanic titleholder was crowned at UFC 315.
Jack Della Maddalena put an abrupt end to Belal Muhammad‘s welterweight title reign in the UFC 315 headliner on Saturday in Montreal. In an instant classic title matchup that surprised fans and pundits, Maddalena and Muhammad treated fans to a firefight at UFC 315.
But despite Muhammad giving Maddalena some late troubles, it was Maddalena’s night, as he outpointed Muhammad by unanimous decision to dethrone the champion. Maddalena remains unbeaten in his UFC career with the win, and appears on track for a potential super fight for his first welterweight title defense.
Israel Adesanya went ballistic for Jack Della Maddalena in UFC 315 live reaction
Maddalena became the second Australian UFC fighter to earn a world title in 2025, after Alexander Volkanovski reclaimed the UFC featherweight throne last month. Volkanovski defeated Diego Lopes for the then-vacant featherweight belt at UFC 314.
Maddalena overcame a long hiatus due to injury to win the UFC welterweight championship at UFC 315. He snapped Muhammad’s 11-fight unbeaten streak, which spanned six years, featuring wins over Gilbert Burns and Stephen Thompson.
Just weeks after watching his teammate Volkanovski become a UFC champion again, Adesanya turned his attention towards supporting Maddalena’s meteoric rise. As you can see in the video below, Adesanya was fired up for Maddalena as the Perth native turned Muhammad’s face into a bloody mess.
“I love it when one of us does it and gets the gold, the pinnacle of the sport, and couldn’t’ve happened to a nicer guy,” Adesanya said after Maddalena’s win. “Well deserved and well-earned, guy, he did this the hard yards just through his hands, through them thangs. And f—, I can’t wait to see what’s next for him.
“He said Islam’s [next], but tonight’s about Jack. F—— king, respect and salud.”
Check out Adesanya’s full live reaction to Maddalena’s victory below as uploaded to his FREESTYLEBENDER YouTube channel. Volkanovski also shared a wild live reaction to Maddalena’s performance.
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Islam Makhachev shared a cold reaction to Jack Della Maddalena’s title win
After earning the UFC welterweight championship, Maddalena has a likely showdown with the UFC’s pound-for-pound king in his sights. UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev is expected to move up to welterweight for his next appearance, as he all but confirmed in a series of social media posts.
Maddalena promised to ‘get revenge’ for Volkanovski against Makhachev, prompting a cold response from the lightweight titleholder. Makhachev warned Maddalena ahead of a likely superfight, as UFC CEO Dana White and the matchmakers ponder what’s next for both parties.
Makhachev says he refuses to vacate the lightweight belt, opening the door to a potential interim championship fight at UFC 317 featuring Ilia Topuria. Former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira is a potential option for Topuria’s UFC 317 adversary.
As for what’s next for Maddalena, he’s eyeing a welterweight title defense in Perth later this year, potentially against Makhachev. Maddalena’s title win adds to what’s been an exciting year for the UFC.