Jack Della Maddalena out to 'prove a point' after missing out on UFC 312

Australian welterweight Jack Della Maddalena has revealed he was keen to fight at UFC 312 in Sydney but couldn’t get an opponent over the line.

The Perth local hasn’t fought since a win over Gilbert Burns last March, with a fractured arm suffered in that bout leading to several more surgeries after the initial wound became infected.

That absence saw him miss the hometown UFC 305 card in August, but now the 28-year-old is fit again and looking to remind his fellow 170-pounders of his championship credentials.

MORE: Who will be fighting at UFC 312 in Sydney?

Speaking on The Ariel Helwani Show, Della Maddalena said he’d been pushing for a fight on the pay-per-view in Sydney next month.

“I was picking up sparring pretty well in December so then I was thinking, ‘Yep, definitely, I will fight in Sydney.’

“I just couldn’t get the fight. None of the guys in front of me really wanted to fly out to Sydney. 

“I did say I’m good to fight [Kamaru] Usman in Sydney, I thought that would have been good. Then that fell through.”

Della Maddalena has since signed on to fight former champion Leon Edwards in the main event at UFC London on March 22 (March 23 in Australia).

“I didn’t mind the idea of fighting Carlos Prates, I thought why not, he’s an up and comer. Gilbert [Burns] gave me the opportunity, I’ve had a year off,” he said.

“I was ready to step in and fight him but the UFC came to me and said, ‘Would you want to fight Leon in London?’ 

“It gives me an extra few weeks to ensure that the arm’s strong and have the jump on it.”

After what will be more than 12 months on the sidelines, Della Maddalena is hoping a win will put him at the front of the queue for a title shot, with champion Belal Muhammad expected to face Shavkat Rakhmanov in the first half of this year.

“It’s a perfect fight to set up a good year. If I can take out the former champion in impressive fashion, it lines up a big fight,” Della Maddalena said.

“I want to go in there and prove a point. Prove a point that I could do to Leon what Belal couldn’t do and secure the shot.”