Della Maddalena probably preferred his view from the
Ultimate Fighting Championship penthouse, even if only lasted a
little more than six months.
The former undisputed welterweight champion will take his first
step toward reclaiming the 170-pound crown when he confronts
Carlos
Prates in the
UFC Fight Night 275 headliner on Saturday at RAC Arena in
Perth, Australia. Della Maddalena enters the Octagon as a slight
underdog against the dangerous Vale Top Team- and
Fighting Nerds-trained Brazilian. Even so, he appears to have
multiple paths to victory ahead of his latest high-profile
assignment. A look at three reasons why Della Maddalena beats
Prates in the UFC’s first visit to Australia in almost three
months:
Chin
Della Maddalena may bend, but he does not break. The 29-year-old
crooked-nosed Aussie steps back into the spotlight having won 18 of
his past 19 bouts—a ridiculous run of sustained success rarely seen
at any level of mixed martial arts. Durability has been an
essential spoke in the Della Maddalena wheel, as he has been
stopped by strikes only once in his 21-fight career. That lone
setback occurred in his pro debut more than a decade ago on March
12, 2016, when he was just 19 years old. Della Maddalena’s ability
to take punishment has certainly served him well with in the UFC,
where opponents have yet to be credited with a knockdown against
him despite his having absorbed nearly 400 significant strikes
across 23 rounds of hand-to-hand combat. Prates has relied heavily
on finishes throughout his time in the sport, with 21 of his 23
victories having resulted in either a knockout or a submission. If
“The Nightmare” wants to get past Della Maddalena, he probably
needs all five rounds to do it.
Volume
Della Maddalena marches into the match at a two-inch disadvantage
in height and five-inch deficit in reach. Nevertheless, most other
metrics favor the Australian. Della Maddalena lands more often
(5.57 significant strikes per minute to 3.77) and gets hit less
often (3.84 significant strikes per minute to 4.53), all while
connecting at virtually the same percentage as the explosive
Brazilian. He has landed at least 80 significant strikes in four of
his past five appearances, highlighted by a career-best 178 of them
in his title-clinching unanimous decision over Belal
Muhammad at UFC 315. By comparison, Prates has yet to land more
than 63 significant strikes in a single fight since he joined the
roster in 2024. Should he fail to secure a stoppage, odds seem to
swing dramatically in Della Maddalena’s favor.
Support
Della Maddalena owns a 9-2 record over his 11 fights in his native
Australia, having won nine straight since he started his career
with back-to-back losses. He gets the benefit of a short drive to
the venue, which seats in the neighborhood of 15,000 people, the
vast majority of whom figure to be in his corner once the cage door
closes behind him. Prates must confront an 8,500-mile, daylong
flight with at least one layover to Australia, along with a
treacherous weight cut and an 11-hour time difference.
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