UFC 322 results: Islam Makhachev smothers Jack Della Maddalena to join elite company

Islam Makhachev UFC 322 victory

MMA Junkie has live coverage of UFC 322 with round-by-round analysis of every fight.

Islam Makhachev is the latest to join the UFC's two-division champion club.

Jack Della Maddalena had no answers for the Dagestani grappling game of Makhachev (28-1 MMA, 17-1 UFC), who dominated Della Maddalena (18-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC), to not only hand him his first UFC loss, but also take his welterweight crown, becoming a two-division titleholder. Makhachev won the fight by unanimous decision, and it wasn't competitive.

Makhachev's first takedown attempt was a successful single leg in the center of the cage with nearly four minutes left in the round. The signature heavy top control from Makhachev put Della Maddalena in trouble early, but he managed to defend the incoming submission attempts well.

Striking exchanges to start Round 2 saw both land cleanly, but a nice short punch from Della Maddalena prompted Makhachev to close the distance and get the fight back to the mat with a lot of time to work again. Della Maddalena did his best to prevent ground and pound as Makhachev continued to smother from the top. With a few ticks remaining, Della Maddalena got back to his feet, but couldn't get away to create offense.

In the third, Makhachev opted to stand and strike for a little longer, but it was only a matter of time before the fight returned to the ground. Della Maddalena was able to prevent Makhachev's choke attempts once again, but not much else. A similar script unfolded early in Round 4, but with Della Maddalena trying to create scrambles, which ultimately put him in worse positions.

In the final round, Della Maddalena showed more urgency, but Makhachev was quick to halt any momentum with another takedown, where he would spend the remainder of the fight hunting for submissions.

During his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, Makhachev explained how much better he felt in competition without having to cut weight. On the undercard, two potential title contenders, Carlos Prates and Michael Morales.

"Donald Trump, open the White House, I am coming," Makhachev said when asked what he wants next.

Makhachev, 34, vacated the lightweight title after four defenses to move up and chase a second title. He joins the elite company of Henry Cejudo, Daniel Cormier, Randy Couture, Jon Jones, Conor McGregor, Amanda Nunes, B.J. Penn, Alex Pereira, Georges St-Pierre and Ilia Topuria as two-division UFC champions. Makhachev also ties Anderson Silva's 16-fight winning streak for the longest in UFC history.

Della Maddalena, 29, sees his 18-fight winning streak come to an end. The Australian won the title by winning a unanimous decision over Belal Muhammad, but was unable to successfully defend.

Full UFC 322 results:

Islam Makhachev def. Jack Della Maddalena via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)
Valentina Shevchenko def. Zhang Weili via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)
Michael Morales def. Sean Brady via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:27
Carlos Prates def. Leon Edwards via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 1:28
Benoit Saint Denis def. Beneil Dariush via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 0:16
Bo Nickal def. Rodolfo Vieira via knockout (head kick) – Round 3, 2:24
Gregory Rodrigues def. Roman Kopylov via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Erin Blanchfield def. Tracy Cortez via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 4:44
Ethyn Ewing def. Malcolm Wellmaker via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Kyle Daukaus def. Gerald Meerschaert via submission (D’Arce choke) – Round 1, 0:50
Pat Sabatini def. Chepe Mariscal via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Fatima Kline def. Angela Hill via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Baisangur Susurkaev def. Eric McConico via knockout (punch) – Round 3, 1:38
Matheus Camilo def. Viacheslav Borshchev via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)