Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has offered his expert prediction for the upcoming welterweight title fight between Jack Della Maddalena and Islam Makhachev.
Towards the end of the year, fans are likely to be treated to a spectacle between Jack Della Maddalena and Islam Makhachev, as the Australian will look to defend his 170lb title for the first time since beating Belal Muhammad at UFC 315.
Initially, Della Maddalena was hopeful of bringing the title fight to Australia but his proposition was seemingly turned down by Dana White and the UFC.
And with that, Makhachev recently pleaded with the promotion for the fight to take place in the legendary Madison Square Garden Arena in New York.
Israel Adesanya predicts Della Maddalena vs Islam Makhachev
The potential welterweight title clash is one of the most anticipated fights the promotion could currently make, despite them having recently announced several blockbuster main events.
White provided a small update in regards to Makhachev, claiming that he will have some news on the Russian very soon, with the fight being targeted for near the end of the year.
And ahead of their highly anticipated clash, Makhachev has been warned by several fighters about the threat of Della Maddalena, and Khabib Nurmagomedov even stated that Della Maddalena will be the toughest fight of Makhachev’s career.
Sharing that notion is former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya who has given his prediction for the guaranteed blockbuster.
“This fight, Ben Vickers (Della Maddalena’s coach) said he’s gonna knock (Makhachev) out, and I believe him, I honestly believe him because I just think he’s not going to be able to hang with him on the scrambles or when he gets back up,” Adesanya said to Alexander Volkanovski in a video on his YouTube.
“Della Maddalena is just so stoic, he just focuses on his own game and when he does that I really think he’s gonna get him and I can’t wait till that happens and wherever it is, I’m gonna be there,” Adesanya continued.
Makhachev’s teammate tells him to work on his wrestling ahead of clash
Although Makhachev is widely regarded as one of the best grapplers in the sport, ahead of his clash against Della Maddalena, he has been advised to work on his wrestling by his teammate, Daniel Cormier.
Throughout his UFC tenure, Della Maddalena has shown an incredible ability to keep the fight on the feet and evade any danger on the ground.