Jack Della Maddalena proved he could overcome a top dog of the division in Gilbert Burns, but it wasn’t an easy task.
On the main card of UFC 299, Della Maddalena (17-2 MMA, 7-0 UFC) was down to Burns (22-7 MMA, 15-7 UFC) on two of the judges’ scorecards going into the final round. However, Della Maddalena found a way to evade the judges by knocking out Burns at 3:43 of Round 3.
The welterweight bout was part of the main card at Kaseya Center in Miami.
Burns attacked with kicks to the legs and the body early as the crowd chanted his name. Della Maddalena stayed calm, but soon found himself on the mat with Burns on his back after a quick takedown. Nothing would come of the sequence on the ground, and Della Maddalena would land a nice knee on the exit from the clinch after the fight returned to standing.
Della Maddalena looked to land punches in the exchanges that followed, but Burns closed out the round with a solid takedown and a few punches on the canvas.
A patient striking approach continued for Della Maddalena in Round 2, until Burns completed another well-timed takedown. The fight quickly returned to the feet again, and Della Maddalena continued to press forward. Burns cracked with a clean short elbow, but did little to stop Della Maddalena from moving forward.
Della Maddalena blitzed forward with a combination, putting Burns on the defensive. However, a few moments later, Burns smashed with a big overhand right and then scored another takedown.
Between rounds, Della Maddalena’s corner called for urgency as they acknowledged Burns won Round 2. He answered the call by landing hard punches early in Round 3, prompting Burns to cover up and then shoot for a takedown. Burns eventually got Della Maddalena down and took the back.
Della Maddalena rolled out of the hold and smashed Burns with a crushing knee as he got to his feet. Follow up elbows and hammerfists led to the stoppage a few seconds later.
17 IN A ROW FOR JACK DELLA MADDALENA 💥 #UFC299 pic.twitter.com/2odpXfyPbV
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 10, 2024
Jack Della Maddalena checked on Gilbert Burns after their fight at #UFC299
Respect 🤝 pic.twitter.com/bWPUWNRb0i
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 10, 2024
After picking up the biggest win of his career thus far, Della Maddalena called for a No. 1 contender fight against the highly-touted undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov.
“There’s some scary people in this division, and I’m the f*cking scariest,” Della Maddalena said during his post-fight interview. “Shavkat Rakhmonov, I think me and you could make a hell of a title eliminator. One of the best in the business, let’s go!”
Up-to-the-minute UFC 299 results include:
- Jack Della Maddalena def. Gilbert Burns via knockout (strikes) – Round 3, 3:43
- Petr Yan def. Yadong Song via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Curtis Blaydes def. Jailton Almeida via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 0:36
- Maycee Barber vs. Katlyn Cerminara via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Mateusz Gamrot def. Rafael dos Anjos via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
- Kyler Phillips def. Pedro Munhoz via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Philipe Lins def. Ion Cutelaba via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Michel Pereira def. Michal Oleksiejczuk via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 1:01
- Robelis Despaigne def. Josh Parisian via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 0:18
- Asu Almabaev def. CJ Vergara via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Joanne Wood def. Maryna Moroz via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 299.
