UFC 322 weigh-in results: Champs, title contenders on point and ready to fight

Not everyone made weight Friday morning at the official UFC 322 weigh-in, but all four fighters competing for gold did.

Jack Della Maddalena, Islam Makhachev, Valentina Shevchenko and Zhang Weili all stepped on the scale and successfully hit the mark to render Saturday’s two championship fights official.

There was a one-pound allowance for all fighters competing in three-round, non-title bouts, but Della Maddalena, Makhachev, Shevchenko and Zhang were not afforded the extra pound for their respective five-round contests.

The headliners could weigh no more than 170 pounds for their title fight to be made official. The defending champion stepped on the scale at 169.8 pounds and the challenger was an even 170.

Della Maddalena defeated Belal Muhammad by five-round unanimous decision in May to become the 13th undisputed welterweight champion in UFC history. Makhachev was the longtime 155-pound champion but vacated the lightweight title earlier this year so he could challenge the current 170-pound champ. 

The 33-year-old from Dagestan, Russia, has appeared to be in high spirits this week, with one contributing factor being the fact his weight cut wasn’t nearly as arduous as making the lightweight limit was.

Both main-event fighters enter UFC 322 riding extensive winning streaks. Makhachev has won 15 fights in a row in the UFC since suffering his only loss 10 years ago, in his second UFC appearance. Makhachev could tie Anderson Silva’s UFC record of 16 consecutive victories if his hand is raised this weekend in New York City.

Meanwhile, Della Maddalena is 8-0 in the UFC since debuting in the organization in 2022 and has won 18 consecutive pro fights overall after starting his mixed martial arts career 0-2 in 2016. Despite being the incumbent champion from the heavier weight class, the 29-year-old from Australia is a significant underdog heading into Saturday, with Makhachev sitting at a three-to-one favourite, according to betting odds on the eve of the event.

Saturday’s co-main event was also made official with Shevchenko and Zhang being two of the first fighters to weigh in. The pair couldn't weigh more than 125 pounds each, and they ended up weighing an identical 124.6 pounds.

Shevchenko is the top women’s flyweight fighter in the UFC and is ranked No. 1 on the women’s pound-for-pound list, while two-time 115-pound champ Zhang is ranked No. 2 pound-for-pound. Zhang vacated the strawweight in order to challenge Shevchenko. Zhang will look to join Amanda Nunes as the only other woman in UFC history to win titles in two different weight classes.

On paper, the 14-bout event at Madison Square Garden is the deepest and most stacked card of the year.

In addition to Della Maddalena vs. Makhachev, the main card features two more pivotal scraps in the welterweight division as powerhouse grappler Sean Brady faces dangerous striker Michael Morales, plus former champion Leon Edwards looks to snap a two-fight losing streak when he takes on rising knockout artist Carlos Prates.

Veteran lightweight contender Beneil Dariush was the lone fighter to miss weight on Friday. Dariush is set to kick off the main card against the streaking Benoit Saint Denis. Dariush was off by 1.2 pounds and will be fined 20 per cent of his purse for the miss but the fight will proceed.

There was one short-notice change to the preliminary card, with the UFC announcing Thursday that Malcolm Wellmaker will face Ethyn Ewing instead of Cody Haddon, who was removed from the card after sustaining an injury. Wellmaker versus Haddon was a bantamweight contest but Wellmaker versus Ewing is scheduled as featherweight bout.

This is Wellmaker’s third scheduled opponent for UFC 322, as he was originally supposed to fight Canadian Serhiy Sidey before Sidey was replaced by Haddon. Ewing, 27, is a 6-2 pro who’s making his UFC debut just seven days after earning a first-round win to win a bantamweight title on the regional scene.

The preliminary card features a handful of top middleweights, with touted wrestler Bo Nickal facing multiple Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Rodolfo Vieira in the featured prelim. Roman Kopylov vs. Gregory Rodrigues has the potential to be a leading Fight of the Night contender. All-time middleweight submissions leader Gerald Meerschaert faces fellow finisher Kyle Daukaus, while touted unbeaten up-and-comer Baisangur Susurkaev will make his second UFC appearance after earning a contract through Dana White’s Contender Series in August. Susurkaev faces Eric McConico.

There are also two rematches on the prelims that were years in the making. Pat Sabatini will look to avenge a split decision loss to Chepe Mariscal from 7.5 years ago when they clash in a featherweight contest.

Top-10 women’s flyweight contenders Erin Blanchfield and Tracy Cortez meet for the second time. Cortez won a split decision when they met at an Invicta FC event more than 6.5 years ago. It was Blanchfield’s fourth pro bout and Cortez’s sixth. The winner of this 125-pound matchup will move closer to a title shot and will keep a close eye on the result from the co-main event.

UFC 322 marks the organization’s ninth trip to Madison Square Garden since 2016 and first since UFC 309. Official weigh-in results:

MAIN CARD

-- Jack Della Maddalena (169.8) vs. Islam Makhachev (170)

-- Valentina Shevchenko (124.6) vs. Zhang Weili (124.6)

-- Sean Brady (169.4) vs. Michael Morales (170.6)

-- Leon Edwards (170) vs. Carlos Prates (169.6)

-- Beneil Dariush (157.2)* vs. Benoit Saint-Denis (155.6)

PRELIMINARY CARD

-- Bo Nickal (185.8) vs. Rodolfo Vieira (186)

-- Roman Kopylov (185.2) vs. Gregory Rodrigues (185.8)

-- Erin Blanchfield (125.8) vs. Tracy Cortez (125.6)

-- Malcolm Wellmaker (143.6) vs. Ethyn Ewing (145.2)

-- Kyle Daukaus (186) vs. Gerald Meerschaert (185.6)

-- Pat Sabatini (145.6) vs. Chepe Mariscal (145.6)

-- Angela Hill (115.6) vs. Fatima Kline (115.4)

-- Baisangur Susurkaev (185.2) vs. Eric McConico (185.6)

-- Viacheslav Borshchev (155) vs. Matheus Camilo (155.8)

*missed weight