Overview
- UFC 322 on Nov. 15 at Madison Square Garden features Jack Della Maddalena vs. Islam Makhachev for the 170-pound title after Makhachev vacated lightweight.
- Makhachev said he wants Kamaru Usman for his first defense if victorious, and Usman signaled he is ready to face the winner.
- Coach Javier Mendez praised Makhachev’s physical and mental peak this camp and said Della Maddalena is a serious challenge after extensive film study.
- Makhachev ruled out moving to middleweight, cooling talk of a Khamzat Chimaev superfight.
- Fight-week footage showed Makhachev’s added size after he acknowledged first-time creatine use, while Dustin Poirier warned the matchup may hinge on takedowns versus JDM’s boxing and scrambles.