The UFC 315 main event provided one of the biggest upsets in recent history. But the UFC brass will perhaps now be rueing that major win for Jack Della Maddalena. The bout, which saw Maddalena defeat Belal Muhammad in the latter’s first attempt to defend the Welterweight title, would ultimately decide the direction of Ilia Topuria, Charles Oliveira, and Islam Makhachev, as well as Della Maddalena and Belal.
Following the fight, Islam added to the already dramatic narrative by deciding to move up to welterweight and challenge JDM in a bid to become a double champion. The aftermath of UFC 315 has been pure popcorn coverage, but the chaos hasn’t been a great look for the UFC and its creative planning.
Interestingly, in response to Islam claiming he wouldn’t vacate his 155lbs title, the UFC has reportedly stripped him of it, to facilitate a change of guard at lightweight.
To some, Islam Makhachev’s 27-1 record justifies a bid for the double championship. However, as Daniel Cormier points out, the prospect of Islam battling Della Maddalena for the coveted double title status doesn’t quite carry the same weight as previous double championship fights.
“It really does come to if the boss is excited about it,” started Cormier on ESPN MMA.
“When Conor [McGregor] won that second belt, it made Dana super excited about the idea that guys could win two belts. So, when he came up to me and asked me about becoming the double champion, he was very excited,” he noted.
McGregor memorably overcame Lightweight champ Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 to become a double champion. Cormier himself became a double champion when he defeated Stipe Miocic in 2018 for the UFC Heavyweight title.
Miocic and Alvarez were crucial components to those victories because they were top-tier, highly accomplished stars of the UFC.
Della Maddalena is well on his way, but he doesn’t present the same calibre as Miocic and Alvarez yet. If Islam is to chase that second belt, he needs to be taking it off someone who matches his prestige in the UFC.
“It doesn’t feel like super fights,” continued Cormier. “Having a guy carrying a belt up to the next weight doesn’t resonate as strongly as it did back then.”
Meanwhile, Cormier’s Good Guy/Bad Guy co-host Chael Sonnen maintains that the Dagestani champion should have never run away from Topuria in the first place
Sonnen: Islam moving up is “a sign of cowardice”
Having listened to Cormier’s points on the champ-champ bout between Islam Makhachev and JDM, Chael Sonnen was not one to mince his words.
One of the interesting twists to the UFC 315 permutations was that if Belal had defended successfully against JDM, a bout between Islam and Belal probably wouldn’t have gone ahead because of their friendship.
This was a condition that Sonnen sorely disagreed with.
“The bottom line is you entered a division openly, that you said you wouldn’t face one of the top guys [Belal],” stated Sonnen. “That’s not a sign of courage, that’s a sign of cowardice,” he asserted.
While Islam vs Ilia is on hold for now, it feels like an inevitable fight for the future. Looking at the statistics of JDM and Topuria, it feels like Islam is facing them in the wrong order.
Right now, it makes more sense to face Ilia, as it has the feel of a super fight.
As for JDM, despite having 18 victories to his name, he needs more time to solidify his position and legacy. Give him time to grow, and the Islam showdown will feel worth its double title status.
This is why, despite his new champion status, the fight feels like a mismatch for so many reasons.
