The UFC is returning to New York for its annual November pay-per-view event, and it will be headlined by a blockbuster billing. UFC 322 will take place Nov. 15 at Madison Square Garden and features two champion vs. champion matchups, UFC president Dana White announced Thursday on social media.
Jack Della Maddalena will defend the welterweight title against former longtime lightweight champion Islam Makhachev in the headliner, and women’s flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko will defend her belt against strawweight champion Zhang Weili in the co-main event.
Della Maddalena defeated Belal Muhammad at UFC 315 in May to become the new undisputed 170-pound champion in May.
Makhachev is 27-1 with 15 consecutive victories and, until recently, was the No. 1 fighter on the UFC’s pound-for-pound rankings. The 33-year-old from Dagestan, Russia, vacated the lightweight title earlier this year after announcing he was planning a move up a division to win a title in a second weight class.
“Time to become a double champion,” Makhachev posted to social media minutes after Della Maddalena won the title. “Let’s go.”
Makhachev most recently fought in January when he defended the lightweight title against short-notice replacement opponent Renato Moicano. Makhachev was originally scheduled to face No. 1 contender Arman Tsarukyan, who withdrew from the bout on the eve of the event due to what was described as a back injury.
Della Maddalena, 28, has won 18 consecutive fights since beginning his professional career 0-2 back in 2016. The Australian is 8-0 at the UFC level, including a knockout win over Gilbert Burns that ultimately earned him a title shot.
Meanwhile, Shevchenko is coming off her eighth career title defence in May when she defeated Manon Fiorot at UFC 315. Her win over Fiorot was the 10th total UFC title fight victory since Shevchenko became champion in 2018.
The 37-year-old from Kyrgyzstan is in her second stint as 125-pound champion after losing the belt to Alexa Grasso in 2023 and winning back the belt in 2024.
Shevchenko is the No. 1-ranked fighter on the UFC’s women’s pound-for-pound list, while Zhang is the No. 2 pound-for-pound women’s fighter.
Zhang will vacate her strawweight title to pursue the flyweight championship. The 36-year-old Chinese star was a two-time champion at 115 pounds and has won five consecutive bouts. She is coming off a unanimous decision win over Tatiana Suarez at UFC 312 in February.
Also announced for UFC 322, Carlos Prates will face former welterweight champion Leon Edwards.
Prates is the No. 9-ranked contender in the 170-pound division, and the Brazilian striker thrilled MMA fans with a spinning elbow knockout win over Geoff Neal earlier this month at UFC 319.
The 32-year-old has won 12 of his past 13 fights. Prates lost a five-round decision to Ian Machado Garry in their April Fight Night main event that snapped an 11-fight winning streak, but he bounced back in a major way with the win over Neal, which earned a Performance of the Night bonus.
Prates has five knockout wins since 2024, which is more than any other fighter during that time.
Edwards, meanwhile, will be looking to snap the first two-fight losing streak of his career. The 34-year-old from England lost his title to Belal Muhammad by five-round decision in 2024 and was submitted by Sean Brady in March. He remains the No. 4-ranked contender in the division despite his recent drought.
UFC 322 will mark the organization’s ninth trip to Madison Square Garden since 2016.
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