UFC's Jack Della Maddalena thinks he can 'shock the world' by finishing Shavkat Rakhmonov

UFC welterweight Jack Della Maddalena is confident he could take out Shavkat Rakhmonov.

Della Maddalena (18-2 MMA, 7-0 UFC) called out Rakhmonov (18-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) after knocking out former title challenger Gilbert Burns at UFC 299. Rakhmonov is undefeated with a 100 percent finish rate, so Della Maddalena thinks stopping him should undeniably lead to a title shot.

“I think I finish him,” Della Maddalena told ESPN. “I think I go in there and shock the world. A lot of people count me out, but I reckon I could spark him and then get the title shot.”

Della Maddalena hopes the UFC is on board. Rakhmonov appears to be, after he sent Della Maddalena a stern warning on “X.”

I respect your courage and confidence Jack, but you will face the same fate as my previous opponents

— Shavkat “Nomad” Rakhmonov (@Rakhmonov1994) March 10, 2024

“Great, he’s perfect,” Della Maddalena said of Rakhmonov’s response. “I feel like he’s like a James Bond villain, so I’m happy to be James Bond, and I thought that was the perfect response from him. I don’t know how this thing works, but I think it’s on.”

Della Maddalena broke his arm in the first round of his fight against Burns. He sees late summer as a good time for him and Rakhmonov to fight.

“I’ve seen that he wanted to fight early August,” Della Maddalena said. “He’s carrying an injury, I’m carrying an injury, I reckon I’m good to go early August, so August sometime. Mid-August, maybe down this side of the world. Who knows?”