Jack Della Maddalena beat Belal Muhammad via unanimous decision to wrest away the welterweight championship in the main event at Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 315 on Saturday night.
Della Maddalena (18-2-0) extended his fight win streak to 18 with a 48-47, 48-47, 49-46 decision.
The loss ended Muhammad’s 11-fight streak dating to January 2019.
Photo: Eric Bolte / Imagn Images
“He brings the pressure, you know, I knew I had to be smart,” the Australian said.
In the co-main event, two-time UFC flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko (25-4-1) defended her belt against No. 2 contender Manon Fiorot (12-2) of France.
All three judges scored it 48-47.
“I was expecting a hard fight, she’s a good fighter,” the 37-year-old from Kyrgyzstan said.
“I’m going to keep going. Numbers is nothing. What is more important is how you feel physically, mentally, how you perform,” she said.
Aiemann Zahabi shocked UFC Hall of Famer Jose Aldo in a featherweight main card fight, after which Aldo announced his retirement.
Zahabi (13-2) won by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) and the Canadian has now won six straight fights.
The fight was originally scheduled to be disputed at the bantamweight division, but was changed to featherweight on Friday after both fighters checked in above the weight limit.
Aldo (32-10), of Brazil, announced his retirement from mixed martial arts fighting after a 21-year career.
“I don’t think I have it in me anymore,” Aldo said through a translator.
Saturday’s card was the first in Canada since US President Donald Trump’s election victory in November last year. It comes amid growing political tensions between Canada and the US, as Trump has repeatedly suggested that Canada should become the 51st US state, and some of that tension spilt over.
Canadian Mike Malott (12-2-1) won his fight with American Charles Radtke (10-5) by knockout 26 seconds into the second round of their welterweight bout. Malott took down Radtke with a clean left hook and would not let up, striking his opponent with repeated follow-up blows to seal the knockout.
Radtke was met with jeers and curses from fans throughout the fight in response to comments he made to Canadian fans at a pre-fight news conference on Wednesday and the booing of The Star-Spangled Banner at Canadian sporting events in recent months.
“When you all boo the national anthem, somebody’s gonna have to pay for that,” Radtke said.
In the women’s flyweight division, Canadian Jasmine Jasudavicius (14-3) took down Brazilian Jessia Andrade (26-14) by submission halfway through the first round.
“When I was preparing for this fight, I kept on thinking about it being a quick finish,” Jasudavicius said. “I kept on telling myself to be ready for 15 hard minutes and everything.”
Marc-Andre Barriault (17-9) also knocked out opponent Bruno Silva (23-13) 1:27 into the opening round of their middleweight bout with an elbow strike to the side of Silva’s head. Silva left the octagon on a stretcher.
Benoit Saint Denis (14-3) beat Kyle Prepolec (12-8) by submission in the opening main card fight. The Frenchman took down the Canadian with an arm-triangle choke midway through the second round.
Prepolec only found out less than two weeks ago that he would be fighting in Montreal. The 35-year-old was called in to replace Joel Alvarez, who has a hand injury.
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