Jack Della Maddalena and Carlos Prates will be fighting for key position in the crowded welterweight division Saturday in Perth, Australia when the pair headline a UFC Fight Night event.
Brazil’s Prates, 32, enters the contest a small betting favourite after back-to-back knockout wins over Geoff Neal and former champ Leon Edwards in 2025.
Australia’s Della Maddalena is a one-time titleholder from Perth and will be fighting in his hometown for the first time in three years. The 29-year-old won the title when he won a decision over Belal Muhammad in May but then lost a decision and the belt to Islam Makhachev in November.
The five-round, 170-pound contest headlines a 13-bout card at RAC Arena that features an Australian fighter in each matchup.
Rising lightweight Quillan Salkilld, who also fights out of Perth, is featured in the co-main event against veteran 155-pound contender Beneil Dariush. Past flyweight title challengers Tim Elliott and Perth’s Steve Erceg are set to clash on the main card, while fan favourite Tai Tuivasa looks to snap his six-fight losing streak when he takes on fellow heavyweight finisher Louie Sutherland.
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All but one fighter successfully made weight early on Friday at the official weigh-in. Gerald Meerschaert was above the middleweight limit by four pounds ahead of his 26th UFC appearance.
The 38-year-old American will forfeit 30 per cent of his purse but his bout with opponent Jacob Malkoun will proceed as scheduled, the organization announced.
Unlike most UFC events that take place in Australia, this weekend’s start time is not catered to a North American audience. Instead, the local crowd will get to experience the event in primetime, while fans in Canada and the United States will be watching the fights with their morning coffee.
Projected bout order for UFC Perth below (subject to change) plus full predictions below…
MAIN CARD
-- Jack Della Maddalena vs. Carlos Prates
-- Beneil Dariush vs. Quillan Salkilld
-- Tim Elliott vs. Steve Erceg
-- Marwan Rahiki vs. Ollie Schmid
-- Shamil Gaziev vs. Brando Pericic
-- Tai Tuivasa vs. Louie Sutherland
PRELIMINARY CARD
-- Cameron Rowston vs. Robert Bryczek
-- Junior Tafa vs. Kevin Christian
-- Jacob Malkoun vs. Gerald Meerschaert
-- Colby Thicknesse vs. Vince Morales
-- Ben Johnston vs. Wesley Schultz
-- Jonathan Micallef vs. Themba Gorimbo
-- Dom Mar Fan vs. Kody Steele
Ahead of each UFC event in 2026, UFC reporter Aaron Bronsteter (@aaronbronsteter), producer Dan Fernandes (@DanFernandes__) and writer/editor Mike Johnston (@MikeyJ_MMA) will peruse the odds and make four betting predictions using fantasy dollars: one best bet, one favourite, one underdog and one dart throw wager. REMINDER: Sportsnet is committed to promoting and educating audiences about the importance of betting responsibly. Sources for responsible gambling can be found HERE.
AARON'S PICKS
Cage Lock: Marwan Rahiki -600
Favourite: Cam Rowston -165
Underdog: Jack Della Maddalena +100
Dart Throw: Rowston by KO/TKO +600
Rahiki is getting something of a layup with Schmidt on short notice. He should cruise in this spot. … I have really liked what I’ve seen from Rowston and can see him finding another knockout, which is being offered at long odds. … I was surprised to see Della Maddalena as the underdog, which feels like unfair recency bias. Give me the former champ.
DAN'S PICKS
Cage Lock: Jacob Malkoun -1000
Favourite: Jonathan Micallef -250
Underdog: Jack Della Maddalena +100
Dart Throw: Dariush inside the distance +600
MIKE'S PICKS
Cage Lock: Tuivasa vs. Sutherland ends inside distance -333
Favourite: Kody Steele -188
Underdog: Jack Della Maddalena +100
Dart Throw: Tim Elliott by split/majority decision +1100
Apart from his performance against Makhachev, I’ve always been impressed with JDM’s defensive grappling and I think against Prates he will significantly increase his probability of winning if he mixes up his techniques and occasionally uses some offensive grappling instead of only standing and trading with the rangier Prates the entire fight. … Big fan of Steve Erceg but there’s a lot of value on Tim Elliott here. I see this fight going the distance, being competitive the whole time with potentially some amazing scrambles, and Elliott’s wrestling can help him win some rounds. … That’s also why I’m leaning towards Kody Steele as my favourite. It’s been a while since we’ve seen him and he lost his UFC debut to Rongzhu nearly 15 months ago but he has a strong grappling background he can fall back on if things aren’t going well on the feet. … If Tuivasa vs. Sutherland goes the distance, whoa boy! Suffice it to say it if this one goes the full 15 minutes it will not resemble Josh Hokit vs. Curtis Blaydes. Both heavyweights need a win to stay on the UFC roster in all likelihood and they should both leave it all in the cage.
CAGE LOCKS PARLAY
Three legs: Rahiki + Malkoun + Tuivasa vs. Sutherland ends inside distance
Parlay odds: -150 (to win: $66.87)
2026 STANDINGS AFTER 13 EVENTS
CAGE LOCKS PARLAY
2026 record: 5-8 (W2)
2026 winnings: -$371.64 (on $100 bets)
AARON'S RECORDS/TOTALS (23-29, -5.02 units)
Cage Lock: 7-6 (-$463.27)
Favourite: 8-5 (-$43.90)
Underdog: 6-7 (+$155)
Dart throw: 2-11 (-$150)
DAN'S RECORDS/TOTALS (27-25, +3.51 units)
Cage Lock: 12-1 (+$96.04)
Favourite: 8-5 (-$99.91)
Underdog: 5-8 (-$95)
Dart throw: 2-11 (+$450)
MIKE'S RECORDS/TOTALS (22-29-1, -14.69 units)
Cage Lock: 11-2 (+$68.20)
Favourite: 7-6 (-$107.56)
Underdog: 4-8-1 (-$130)
Dart throw: 0-13 (-$1,300)
Cage Lock: The pick deemed to be the wager most likely to win regardless of what the odds look like. The Cage Locks parlay will combine Aaron’s, Dan’s and Mike’s respective best bet for each event.
Favourite: A fighter with winning odds shorter than -300 but not longer than -110. On chalkier cards with a dearth of available moneyline favourites that meet those criteria, prop bets are allowed to be selected.
Underdog: Any fighter with longer odds than their opponent’s.
Dart Throw: Any prop bet or moneyline wager with odds of +400 or longer.
(Betting odds above are via BetMGM, submitted at various times throughout week, and subject to change prior to the fights)
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