Jack Della Maddalena gets advice from champion ahead of UFC 322 clash with Islam Makhachev

Jack Della Maddalena has gotten some pointers from a current champion before UFC 322.

Maddalena will be defending the UFC Welterweight Championship against Islam Makhachev on Saturday. The two will clash inside Madison Square Garden in New York City. It’ll be Maddalena’s first fight since winning the 170-pound gold from Belal Muhammad back in May.

In a new video posted on his YouTube channel, reigning UFC Featherweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski shared how he feels Maddalena can find the most success against Makhachev (via MMAJunkie).

“Jack’s great on the ground, but we don’t want it to go to the ground,” Volkanovski said. “Even though Jack’s good there, that’s Islam’s world. That’s all he does, 24/7, since he was walking. He probably started wrestling before he started walking. That’s how long these guys have been doing this for. Do we want to go there? Be OK with the scrambles if you’re comfortable enough in the scrambles, and keep that urgency, and use your weight ad hopefully wear on him. Obviously, I was able to tire him from all them little scrambles. Can Jack be effective where he can burn him there?”

Volkanovski then discussed the importance of finding a way to make Makhachev tired the longer the fight goes on. At that point, “The Great” believes Maddalena would be able to tee off in the standup.

“Take the gas away. Again, if he’s going to be complacent in the wrestling and then wait until he’s on his back to build up, you’re not going to tire Islam there. But Jack is going to understand: I ain’t even letting you get this to the floor. I’m going to try and beat you on the feet, I’m going to keep you away, I’m going to have nice strong hips, I’m going to be very stubborn on the feet, stubborn on the wrestling. If it goes down, stubborn to build myself back up, and he’s a great grappler so he can definitely do that. But, Jack needs to keep it on the feet.”

Maddalena enters UFC 322 as the betting underdog, but the margin isn’t as wide as Makhachev’s past fights. There are many experts who believe Maddalena could pose some problems for Makhachev, who set a new record for the most successful lightweight title defenses in UFC history.

Many have questioned whether or not Makhachev will be able to demonstrate his strength as effectively as he did at 155 pounds. Maddalena told Newsweek Sports that he thinks Makhachev will be just as strong as other elite welterweights.

Fight night is on Saturday, and BJPenn.com will have you covered. We’ll be bringing you UFC 322 live results, video highlights, and pro MMA fighter reactions throughout the card. Keep it locked on our homepage this weekend.