Jack Della Maddalena understands that there is no right or wrong approach to a UFC career.
Bantamweight prospect Sean O’Malley spoke out about how much he’s making compared to the competition he’s faced , and why it makes no sense for him to search for top-ranked competitors without being paid more.
There’s obviously a lot of logic in that approach, and Maddalena doesn’t necessarily disagree. But that’s not how he plans to climb the ranks ahead of his next fight.
” There are many paths you could take, Maddalena said to MMA Fighting. Some people prefer to go slower and take it smarter, while I am competitive. I always want to fight the best person I possibly can at that time.
“I’m going to see how it goes, let it fall naturally. But if I get the options, I’m always going to try to take the toughest fight I can take at that time.”
After demolishing Pete Rodriguez in his octagon debut, Maddalena drew Russian sambo specialist Ramazan Emeev at UFC 275.
Emeev has a lot more experience than the Australian welterweight both inside and outside the UFC — and that’s exactly the kind of competition Maddalena wants.
While he wants to get paid, Maddalena wants to win his division. That is possible only if he keeps asking for better and more talented opponents.
“I want to get to the top as quickly as possible,” he said. “I am a competitor and want to be able to compete with the very best .”
As proof that the UFC has faith in Maddalena’s potential, his second appearance in the promotion is currently scheduled as the pay-per-view opener in the first-ever UFC event in Singapore. It’s not a spot he necessarily sought, but he appreciates that the UFC expects big things out of him.
“To be honest, I wasn’t expecting it, but then to see my name on the pay-per-view card is pretty awesome,” Maddalena said. It doesn’t really change much to me. I’ve got a lot of friends coming over to Singapore, so I’m glad they don’t have to get up too early to watch the fight, but apart from that it’s just business as usual for me. Go in there and put on a show.”
Many fighters have to wait for years to earn a pay-per view spot. But Maddelena was always certain that this would be the case, given his propensity for memorable performances.
“There was never a doubt in my mind that I would get to this spot,” he said. “Now it’s here. It’s not surprising that I am here, to be truthful. At the end of the day, the fight is the most important thing, and if you put me on the first fight or the last fight of the card, I will try to perform the exact same way every single time. This is something that I expected would happen sooner than others .”
Fighting-wise, Maddalena may have difficulty scoring a highlight reel finish because Emeev is from a grappling basis and hasn’t finished any fight since 2016..
” I’m prepared for what he brings,” Maddalena stated. He’ll be trying to grab me in grapple at one point, and I feel that. I’m prepared to fight all these people and beat them all.
“I want to fight all styles. To fight a Russian sambo champion is pretty cool, and it’s something I’ll remember for the rest of my life. I think you can be protected in the game and just fight people who are going to be good for your style, but I want to fight everyone. I’m going to fight a wrestler at some stage, so I might as well fight a wrestler early.”
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