Jack Della Maddalena vs. Bassil Hafez Prediction

Jack Della Maddalena has had a whirlwind of a month. First scheduled to fight opposite Sean Brady at UFC 290, the matchup would fall through due to an Injury in Brady’s camp.

Just the week of the fight, promotional newcomer Josiah Harrell would step in, changing the preparation for a jiu-jitsu fighter to a well rounded wrestler at the last minute. Yet, again Della Maddalena’s fight would be cancelled as Harrell’s pre-fight medicals would indicate a case of Moyamoya disease, potentially saving his life.

Now Maddalena has been booked for this week’s fight night against a completely new opponent in Bassil Hafez. Like Harrell, Hafez will be making his UFC debut. His record is 8-3-1 fighting out of Pennsylvania, USA. Haze is also the Fury FC welterweight champion and former CFFC welterweight champion.

Betting Odds

Betting odds have now been released for Jack Della Maddalena vs. Bassil Hafez, with Maddalena a heavy favorite, as expected.

Jack Della Maddalena: -550 (BetUS)
Bassil Hafez: +400 (BetUS)

Special Offer: Sign up to BetUS today and get an exclusive sign-up offer worth up to $2,500

Fight Breakdown

Jack Della Maddalena is quickly becoming known as one of the UFC’s very best boxers. He stands southpaw but switches often and is a particularly ferocious body puncher and likes to work up from the body, climbing the ladder to open more effective head strikes. There’s no mistaking that Della Maddalena’s best weapons come in the form of his hands, and he utilizes his kicks as well as other tactics to force his opponents into that boxing range with him.

Della Maddalena is very good at sitting back and getting a read on the speed and timing of his opponent before he starts working his way forward and cutting off the cage. He will throw low kicks to engage on the outside and hinder movement, but it’s his ability to maintain a tight guard and follow his opponent’s punches back to them that allows him to make up longer reaches. He also needs to depend on slipping into his opponent’s range whenever possible as opposed to away so as to never give up an opportunity to get inside. It’s his offensive boxing that has captivated fans but his defensive prowess is largely why he is able to calmly attack in such a calculated fashion.

In terms of his grappling, it is definitely secondary to his striking but also extremely dangerous. He has good calculated counter-wrestling, and he will technically transition from post to post as to not find himself flattened and settled on his back. He is always working to deny the takedown even if it is deep. His offensive grappling thus far as been a finishing product once he has his opponents hurt on the feet, but in his most recent fight against Randy Brown, he showcased just how quickly he can synch up a choke after dropping his opponents with a stiff right hook.

Hafez is a well-rounded fighter in his own right, with powerful kickboxing and good jiu-jitsu. He will often switch stance but regardless carries the finishing intent in his right hand. From conventional, he likes to feint and get his opponent leaning into a big overhand right, and from southpaw that turns into a lead right hook. In general, he tends to prefer asking shots, his hook and overhands but does a good job of reaching his opponents by finishing his combinations with head kicks. His right cross or hook, to a left jab to a stepping lead left high kick is a common combination in his fights.

Where haze does struggle is getting caught up in a head-hunting contest. He sits down on all of his shots which provides power but doesn’t make him the most mobile fighter. He can be hit with body kicks, and with a high guard, he has been caught by surprise by well-timed and set-up uppercuts from beneath his guard.

Prediction

I do think both men will want to contend the majority of this fight with their boxing. Jack Della Maddalena should have a general advantage here, but the power displayed in Hafez’s final Fury fight also cannot be ignored.

That being said, I think that instead of working his way up from the body as has been his habit, it would actually aid Della Maddalena to draw Hafez into reacting to his shots up high so that he can slip inside and rip to the body or an uppercut from below the guard once he gets his reads. Hafez has a bit of a rigid guard, so I expect there to be openings for Della Maddalena when Hafez goes to a high shell.