Jack Della Maddalena neutralised Belal Muhammad's wrestling skills, conceding only one takedown on his way to becoming the new welterweight champion in the main event of UFC 315 in Montreal.
Australia's Della Maddalena, 28, won the five-rounder by scores of 48-47, 48-47, 49-45. He used volume striking to frustrate the now-former welterweight champion, nearly finishing the bout on several occasions.
Della Maddalena (18-2 MMA) has now won 18 in a row. Muhammad (24-4, 1 NC) was making his first title defence and had won 11 consecutive fights.
Della Maddalena credited Muhammad's toughness but said post-fight that he knew he wasn't going to let it slip away.
“It felt good,” he said with a smile. “I knew I had to be smart. I knew I couldn’t spend too much time on my back.”
Della Maddalena said he's intrigued by UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev's possible move to welterweight and he's open to exacting revenge on the Russian. His fellow Australian, Alexander Volkanovski, lost twice previously to Makhachev.
It was a first loss for Muhammad, a Chicago native, since January 2019.
Meanwhile, Valentina Shevchenko successfully defended her UFC women's flyweight title in the co-main event over Manon Fiorot, winning a unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 48-47) to hand Fiorot her first UFC loss.
Despite a closely contested bout, Shevchenko (25-4, 1 NC MMA) pushed the pace in rounds four and five to tire out Fiorot and give the Frenchwoman little room to work after signs of early success through three gruelling rounds.
“I expected a hard fight,” said Shevchenko, a 125-pounder from Kyrgyzstan.
“It's not just experience [that made the difference] but also brains. Every day practising: power, speed, strategy.”
The victory marked Shevchenko's 14th in the UFC, including 10 title fights.
Aldo retires after defeat to Zahabi
Initially scheduled as a bantamweight fight, Canadian featherweight Aiemann Zahabi earned a win by unanimous decision against former UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo, taking the three scorecards by matching 29-28 scores.
Aldo nearly finished Zahabi in Round 3 with a head kick, followed by a flurry of strikes. However, Zahabi was able to survive Aldo's attacks, gain the top position, and open a cut on Aldo.
The win for Zahabi (13-2 MMA) marked Brazilian Aldo's (32-10) final MMA fight, announcing his retirement in the Octagon.
“I just don't have it in my heart any more,” said Aldo, 38. “I think this is the last time you're going to see me.”
Women's flyweight Natalia Silva of Brazil knocked off former champion Alexa Grasso from her top contender status with a unanimous decision win, all by 30-27 scores.
Silva (19-5-1 MMA) has won her first six UFC fights, while Mexico's Grasso (16-5-1 MMA) has to return to the drawing board to remain in contention. Silva opened a noticeable cut above Grasso's eyelid, swinging the momentum in Round 2 before a one-sided Round 3 followed suit with dominant kickboxing ability.
Lightweight Benoit Saint-Denis of France had no trouble beating Canadian Kyle Prepolec, a late replacement, with an arm triangle choke at 2:35 of the second round.
It was Saint-Denis' (14-3) first win since November 2023, snapping a two-fight losing skid. Prepolec (18-9) stepped in for Joel Alvarez (22-3) and made his first Octagon appearance since 2019.
Like a Fading Shadow
Antonio Muñoz Molina
Translated from the Spanish by Camilo A. Ramirez
Tuskar Rock Press (pp. 310)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
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Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
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INDIA SQUADS
India squad for third Test against Sri Lanka
Virat Kohli (capt), Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Vijay Shankar
India squad for ODI series against Sri Lanka
Rohit Sharma (capt), Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Siddarth Kaul
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
Copa del Rey
Barcelona v Real Madrid
Semi-final, first leg
Wednesday (midnight UAE)
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Founder: Ayman Badawi
Date started: Test product September 2016, paid launch January 2017
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Software
Size: Seven employees
Funding: $170,000 in angel investment
Funders: friends
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Zayed Sustainability Prize
More on animal trafficking
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
What are the main cyber security threats?
Cyber crime - This includes fraud, impersonation, scams and deepfake technology, tactics that are increasingly targeting infrastructure and exploiting human vulnerabilities.
Cyber terrorism - Social media platforms are used to spread radical ideologies, misinformation and disinformation, often with the aim of disrupting critical infrastructure such as power grids.
Cyber warfare - Shaped by geopolitical tension, hostile actors seek to infiltrate and compromise national infrastructure, using one country’s systems as a springboard to launch attacks on others.
Black Panther
Dir: Ryan Coogler
Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Michael B Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o
Five stars
