NEW YORK — Jack Della Maddalena started boxing at 15, inspired by the Strikeforce highlights of Nick Diaz and Jorge Masvidal he’d watch with his older brother, Josh, to join a gym and get in some extra conditioning between rugby seasons. He took his first mixed martial arts fight at 18, winning a pair on the amateur circuit, before turning professional less than a year later.

And that’s nearly where it ended. Before his 19th birthday, he’d dropped his first two pro fights, getting knocked out in the third round and choked out in the first. He had a job at an invoice factoring company. A normal Australian life awaited. But after that second fight, he had a call with his coach, Ben Vickers, who told him he was too good to be 0-2. Not only was Della Maddalena going to continue fighting, he w

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