The UFC made its return to Madison Square Garden in New York on Saturday with for UFC 322 headlined by a welterweight title bout between champion Jack Della Maddalena and challenger Islam Mackhachev. The event also featured a co-main event for the women’s flyweight championship, as Valentina Shevchenko faced former strawweight champion Zhang Weili.

Islam Makhachev def. Jack Della Maddalena (c) via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)

Islam Makhachev became a two-division champion on Saturday night, dominating Jack Della Maddalena over five rounds to claim the welterweight title at UFC 322 inside Madison Square Garden. Moving up from lightweight, Makhachev became the 11th fighter in UFC history to hold championships in two weight classes, and he did so with a dominant performance from start to finish.

Makhachev repeatedly grounded Della Maddalena with perfectly timed takedowns and kept him down on the canvas for nearly the entire fight. His control was overwhelming, as he mixed in calf kicks, sharp counters, and relentless top pressure to neutralize Della Maddalena. Entering the night, Della Maddalena (18-3) had not lost since 2016 and had won the welterweight title in May by outstriking Belal Muhammad, but he found no answers against Makhachev’s wrestling and superior positioning.

Concerns that Della Maddalena’s boxing and size might trouble Makhachev was gone within seconds, as the former lightweight champion secured an early takedown and set the tone. Makhachev racked up more than 19 minutes of control time and outstruck Della Maddalena 123-32, smashing the legs with kicks and landing clean shots from top position. Della Maddalena spent most of the fight simply trying to stand up or avoid submissions, but Makhachev’s pressure never relented.

With the win, Makhachev (28-1) tied Anderson Silva’s UFC record of 16 consecutive wins, extending a decade-long unbeaten streak and reaffirming his status as one of the most dominant fighters in MMA history.

Valentina Shevchenko (c) def. Zhang Weili via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)

Valentina Shevchenko strengthened her claim as the top pound-for-pound female fighter in the world by dominating former strawweight champion Zhang Weili to retain her flyweight belt in the co-main event of UFC 322. The matchup was billed as one of the biggest in women’s MMA — Zhang had vacated her 115-pound title to move up and challenge Shevchenko — yet the fight was thoroughly one-sided, with Shevchenko sweeping every round on all three scorecards.

Shevchenko controlled every phase of the bout, but especially in the grappling exchanges. She repeatedly timed Zhang’s entries, secured takedowns, and maintained dominant top control, preventing the challenger from mounting any meaningful offense. On the feet, Shevchenko dictated range with precise kicks to the legs and body before returning the fight to the canvas to reinforce her dominance.

Shevchenko’s combination of striking, countering, and positional grappling was seamless throughout the night. In the middle rounds, she hurt Zhang with body kicks and ended multiple rounds with dominant takedowns. By the championship rounds, her approach became routine: strike from distance, shoot at the perfect moment, and secure long spells of control. Zhang had no answers.

Shevchenko outlanded Zhang 137-80 in total strikes, converted 5 of 6 takedowns, and amassed 13:24 of control time — even threatening the crucifix position on several occasions. With this latest win, Shevchenko (26-4-1) earns her ninth successful title defense across two championship reigns and ties Amanda Nunes for the most wins in UFC title fights with 11.

UFC 322: Della Maddalena vs. Makhachev Results

• Islam Makhachev def. Jack Della Maddalena (c) via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)
• Valentina Shevchenko (c) def. Zhang Weili via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)
• Michael Morales def. Sean Brady via first-round knockout (punches)
• Carlos Prates def. Leon Edwards via second-round knockout (punch)
• Benoit Saint Denis def. Beneil Dariush via first-round knockout (punch)
• Bo Nickal def. Rodolfo Vieira via third-round knockout (head kick)
• Gregory Rodrigues def. Roman Kopylov via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Erin Blanchfield def. Tracy Cortez via second-round submission (rear naked choke)
• Ethyn Ewing def. Malcolm Wellmaker via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
• Kyle Daukaus def. Gerald Meerschaert via first-round submission (d’arce choke)
• 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 third-round knockout (punches)
• Matheus Camilo def. Viacheslav Borshchev via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)