Overview
- Jack Della Maddalena and Islam Makhachev made championship weight (169.8 and 170 pounds, respectively) after a brief scare for the champion at 170.4 before he stripped to hit the mark; Valentina Shevchenko and Zhang Weili each weighed 124.6.
- Lightweight veteran Beneil Dariush missed at 157.2 pounds, so his bout with Benoît Saint Denis will proceed at catchweight with Dariush forfeiting 20% of his purse.
- BetMGM lists Makhachev as the main-event favorite at roughly -275 with Della Maddalena around +220, and Shevchenko as a slight favorite over Zhang.
- Sidelined contender Shavkat Rakhmonov criticized Della Maddalena on social media, saying the champion’s title shot came due to his injury and noting JDM’s prior layoff.
- The main card streams on ESPN+ PPV at 10 p.m. ET, with prelims on ESPN platforms and Disney+ from 8 p.m. and early prelims starting at 6 p.m., as a 14-fight lineup heads to Madison Square Garden.