Although he wouldn’t be most people’s first choice, Jack Della Maddalena will be Belal Muhammad‘s first welterweight title defense at UFC 315 on May 10 in Montreal. Of course, the main reason the Aussie is fighting for the title is because the undefeated 170lbs boogeyman, Shavkat Rakhmonov, had to turn it down due to an injury. But Della Maddalena is not chopped liver either. Clearly one of the best, most promising young prospects in the entire sport, the Aussie has been undefeated in his last seventeen fights.

The only losses on his pro record came in his first two MMA fights back in 2016 when he was fighting in the local Australian circuit. Since then, the title challenger has been nothing but stellar. This is why ‘Bully B’ cannot wait to fight the Aussie contender, and has put him on notice with a dire warning. “Took the 15 streak from Brady, the 12 from Leon, next I’m taking Jack’s 17 fight streak,” Muhammad wrote on his Instagram account.

Indeed, Sean Brady was undefeated (15-0) coming into his UFC 280 clash against Muhammad back in October 2022. Brady did start well, landing some crisp jabs and leg kicks on ‘Bully B’. However, by the second round, the tides had turned, and the Palestinian heritage fighter managed to stop the young buck with overwhelming pressure, leading to a standing TKO. But Brady was just an up-and-coming contender then, still untested at the highest level.

However, not many were expecting Muhammad to destroy Leon Edwards, who was the reigning champion when ‘Bully B’ fought him at UFC 304 last year. Along with holding the title, which he had wrested off of the great Kamaru Usman, ‘Rocky’ was also unbeaten in his last twelve fights since 2016.

And yet Muhammad absolutely bullied the Englishman for five rounds in their Manchester clash, turning Edwards into a meme en route to a unanimous decision victory. And the 170-pound king, who has a chip on his shoulder because of the way fans ridicule him for his ‘boring’ fighting style, cannot wait to beat another golden prospect and get the respect that he feels he deserves. But some feel those plans may be in jeopardy if Muhammad’s assertions about his strategy for UFC 315 are to be believed.

Belal Muhammad promises to strike with Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 315

While most are indeed picking Belal Muhammad to beat Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 315, ‘Bully B’s game plan for the fight has raised some eyebrows. After all, the welterweight champ is a grappler first and foremost, and a pretty damn good one at that. But against Maddalena, Muhammad has vowed to rely almost exclusively on his striking.

“I’m going to go in there, I’m going to outbox Jack. I’m not going to shoot one takedown, and I’m going to show him the meaning of Canelo hands. I’m going to show the UFC fighters, the fans, that I’m the best boxer in the UFC, the best boxer in the welterweight division,” he said.

To be fair to ‘Bully B’, his striking has improved quite a lot in the recent past. After all, Leon Edwards was considered the best striker in the division by many until recently. But still Muhammad managed to outstrike the Englishman 68-47, which is a testament to just how good his stand-up has gotten.

But the champ has much loftier plans for the Maddalena fight and wants to prove he is the best striker in the entire promotion. Will he succeed? We’ll have to see, which is another reason why fans can’t wait for their fight. What do you think about Belal Muhammad’s ‘warning’ to Jack Della Maddalena?