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New York Post
10-05-2025
- Sport
- New York Post
UFC 315 predictions: Belal Muhammad vs. Jack Della Maddalena pick, odds
Gambling content 21+. The New York Post may receive an affiliate commission if you sign up through our links. Read our editorial standards for more information. Expect tons of violence this weekend at UFC 315. Heading into Montreal for a pay-per-view card for the first time since UFC 186 in 2015, the Canadian fans should be juiced. Seven of the 12 fights are projected to end inside the distance, according to oddsmakers, but we're still looking for value when betting on this card. The bouts begin at 6 p.m. ET, with primetime treatment on ESPN. Below, we break down the best bets for all UFC 315, beginning with the curtain jerker. Belal Muhammad vs. Jack Della Maddalena The main event is, unsurprisingly, the best fight on the card. It features a really interesting stylistic matchup featuring a high-volume striker who mixes the arts with an incredible pace in welterweight champion Belah Muhammad against a largely unproven striker in Della Maddalena, who has serious power but tons of questions surrounding him. Della Maddalena looked uneven last time out against Gilbert Burns, having likely lost the first two rounds of the fight before Della Maddalena pulled a rabbit out of his hat and won by TKO. That kind of performance, which was an exhilarating win for him, probably won't be enough to get crowned Saturday. Burns is mostly past his prime, while Muhammad is firmly in the thick of his and on a wild run. That hasn't stopped money from coming in on Della Maddalena, who has fallen from +225 to +135 at the time of writing. This is too big a line movement, and I feel as if fans are betting on Della Maddalena with their hearts and not their brains. Muhammad is the sharp bet here. I don't see Della Maddalena getting it done given the low-level competition that he has faced in his career. Pick: Muhammad by decision (+110, BetMGM) Opponents Valentina Shevchenko of Kyrgyzstan and Manon Fiorot of France face off during the UFC 315 press conference at Bell Centre on May 08, 2025 in Montreal, Quebec. Zuffa LLC Valentina Shevchenko vs. Manon Fiorot The women's flyweight bout features longtime champion Shevchenko getting a chance to defend her title against rising challenger Manon Fiorot. Fiorot is the favorite here to get her hand raised for the first time as Shevchenko gets a bit up there at age 37, having been in the UFC for nine years and dominating the ranks since she arrived. Shevchenko is a +118 underdog, only the third time in her UFC career that she's been priced here. Get the lowdown on the Best USA Sports Betting Sites and Apps Fiorot has run through the division, having dominated with volume striking, including five straight wins by decision. My issue with backing Fiorot is twofold. First, she has only gone five rounds once. Second, Fiorot has not fought anyone near the level of offensive grappler that Shevchenko has shown to be in her career. Fiorot is not some mega-prospect with insane tools, so while the betting markets crash in on the newcomer, I'll go back to the old guard. Pick: Shevchenko moneyline (+118, FanDuel) Rest of the card Jose Aldo vs. Aiemann Zahabi: Fight doesn't go the distance (+270, Bet365). Alexa Grasso vs. Natalia Silva: Grasso moneyline (+220, Caesars). Benoit Saint Denis vs. Kyle Prepolec: Over 0.5 rounds (-280, book to be determined). Mike Malott vs. Charles Radtke: Malott moneyline (-166, DraftKings). Jessica Andrade vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius: Jasudavicius by KO/TKO (+600, Fanatics Sportsbook). Modestas Bukauskas vs. Ion Cutelaba: Bukauskas by decision (+310, ESPN BET). Navajo Stirling vs. Ivan Erslan: Stirling by decision (+270, BetMGM). Marc-Andre Barriault vs. Bruno Silva: Silva moneyline (+124, FanDuel). Daniel Santos vs. JeongYeong Lee: Santos moneyline (+110, Caesars Sportsbook). Brad Katona vs. Bekzat Almakhan: Almakhan moneyline (-148, DraftKings).
Toronto Sun
09-05-2025
- Sport
- Toronto Sun
UFC president Dana White excited to be back in Montreal after decade-long absence
Published May 09, 2025 • 3 minute read UFC President Dana White attends the ceremonial weigh-in for a UFC mixed martial arts event in Elmont, N.Y., July 15, 2022. Photo by Gregory Payan / AP Thousands of crazed fans lined up outside Montreal's Bell Centre for hours on Thursday, despite grey skies and cool temperatures, with the hopes of catching a glimpse of their sports heroes. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account However, they weren't there to see Montreal Canadiens stars like Cole Caufield or Nick Suzuki, but rather Belal Muhammad, Jose Aldo and other mixed-martial artists for the official UFC 315 press conference ahead of the main card scheduled for Saturday night. 'That was just a little bit of a quarter of the bowl and you heard the energy,' said UFC president and CEO Dana White in a one-on-one interview with The Canadian Press following the press conference. 'This place is going to be packed, sold out on Saturday. The Canadian fans are awesome. 'They always bring incredible energy. Saturday is going to be fun. It's great to be back in Montreal.' It has been just over a decade since Montreal last hosted a card held by the American promotion. That was UFC 186, headlined by a flyweight title bout between champion Demetrious Johnson and challenger Kyoji Horiguchi on Apr. 25, 2015. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'They deserve it,' said White. 'Some of the most fun times in my career were when we were breaking into Canada back in the day, getting (professional mixed martial arts) legalized in Ontario (in 2010). As we started to move around, whether to Montreal, the East Coast, West Coast, and everything else in between, Canada remains one my favourite places to go.' Nevertheless, 415 total UFC fight cards and 3,668 days will have passed between that spring night ten years ago and Saturday's UFC 315 fight card featuring title bouts between welterweight champion Muhammad and fifth-ranked Jack Della Maddalena and flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko against France's Manon Fiorot. It's a far cry from the six UFC events held at Bell Centre in a five-year span, between April 2008 and March 2013, four of those cards headlined by three-time welterweight champion and Canadian mixed martial arts legend Georges St-Pierre. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'As we were growing the sport and the company in the early days, there were so many of the guys, from the Chuck Liddells to the Georges St-Pierres that were so instrumental in taking this thing global,' said White. 'I don't know if there will ever be anybody who has an impact up here the way that St-Pierre did.' Saturday's card is also the first being held on Canadian soil since Donald Trump was re-elected American president last November. It comes amid growing political tensions between Canada and the United States, as Trump has repeatedly suggested that Canada should become the 51st U.S. state. 'I don't even think about that at all,' said White. 'That doesn't have an impact on what we do.' White points rather to other world events, such as the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine as well as the COVID-19 pandemic, as far greater hurdles that the UFC has had to recently contend with. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'When you're a global business, there's always going to be things every four years, or even every two years, that affect your business,' said White. 'None of that stuff bothers me. We just do our thing.' The animosity existing between the two nations does risk, however, spilling into the octagon come Saturday. During his Wednesday news conference, American welterweight Charles Radtke referenced the ongoing booing of 'The Star-Spangled Banner' at Canadian sporting events in recent months, saying 'when you all boo the national anthem, somebody's gonna have to pay for that.' He went on to trash-talk Canada, offering an expletive-laden message to any fan at Bell Centre to jeer him during his fight with Mike Malott of Burlington, Ont. MONTREAL'S AIEMANN ZAHABI LOOKS TO IMPRESS Malott will not be the only Canadian fighting on home soil Saturday. Montreal's Aiemann Zahabi is set to face off against former two-time featherweight champion Jose Aldo of Brazil in a bantamweight fight. 'I'm proud to be fighting Jose Aldo,' said Zahabi on Thursday. 'He's a legend of the sport. I'm even more proud to do it here at home in Montreal. 'I know that he said he was disappointed in his last performance, but it's a good thing my brother Firas and I prepared for the best Jose Aldo possible. I'm excited.' Zahabi will have extra support in his corner in the form of St-Pierre, who Zahabi has turned to for advice and guidance in preparation for his bout with the 38-year-old UFC Hall of Famer. Canada NBA Columnists NFL Ontario
Montreal Gazette
09-05-2025
- Sport
- Montreal Gazette
Georges St-Pierre back at Bell Centre as UFC returns to Montreal for first time in 10 years
Fighting By The UFC certainly knows how to put on a show. That was on display again Thursday afternoon at the Bell Centre for a pre-fight news conference ahead of Saturday night's UFC 315 card. The news conference, which was open to the public, attracted a few thousand UFC fans who either cheered or booed loudly while the 10 fighters on the stage — along with UFC president Dana White — were answering questions. It was quite a spectacle. The are two events on the main card Saturday, which is available on pay-per-view starting at 10 p.m. Russia's Valentina Shevchenko will defend her UFC women's flyweight title against France's Manon Fiorot, followed by American Belal Muhammad defending his UFC welterweight title against Australia's Jack Della Maddalena. This is the first UFC event in Montreal since UFC 186 in 2015. While there was an impressive turnout for Thursday's news conference, there were still plenty of tickets available for UFC 315 on Friday morning. The cheapest tickets in the upper deck cost $300.25, while floor seats are $963. White said after the news conference that UFC 315 will be a sellout. The event would have been sold out already if local UFC superstar Georges St-Pierre hadn't retired in 2019 after winning three championship belts while posting a 26-2 record. St-Pierre beat Matt Serra for the UFC welterweight championship at UFC 83 in 2008 at the Bell Centre — the first UFC event held in Canada — and the Saint-Isidore native won all four times he fought in front of his adoring fans at the Bell Centre. St-Pierre will be back at the Bell Centre on Saturday, but this time as a cornerman for Laval native Aiemann Zahabi, who will fight UFC Hall of Famer José Aldo of Brazil in one of the three undercard bouts. Zahabi's older brother, Firas, used to train St-Pierre at his Tristar Gym in Montreal. #UFC fans waiting outside Bell Centre to get in for news conference ahead of UFC 315 card Saturday night. News conference is open to the public. — Stu Cowan (@StuCowan1) May 8, 2025 Zahabi wore a snazzy three-piece, blue pinstriped suit at the news conference with a Canadian flag stitched inside the jacket. He has a 12-2 record in the bantamweight division and has won his last five fights. Aldo is 32-9 and is coming off a loss to Mario Bautista at UFC 307 last October. 'I'm proud to be fighting José Aldo, he's a legend of the sport,' Zahabi said. 'I'm even more proud to do it here at home in Montreal. I know that he said he was disappointed in his last performance, but it's a good thing my brother (Firas) and I prepared for the best Jose Aldo possible. So I'm excited.' Muhammad, a Chicago native, wore a Chris Chelios Blackhawks sweater from the 1992 Stanley Cup final at the news conference with the Hockey Hall of Famer's name and No. 7 on the back. Muhammad is 24-3 in the welterweight division and is unbeaten in his last 11 fights, dating back more than six years. His opponent, Della Maddalena, is 17-2 with 17 straight wins going back more than nine years. 'I love this energy over here, man,' Muhammad said. 'I'm excited. I've been waiting for my first title defence. It is finally here. You're about to see the greatest MMA performance you've ever seen in your life.' Muhammad predicted he would knock Della Maddalena out in the third round. Among the fans in attendance Saturday will be Canadiens forward Jake Evans, who will watch UFC live for the first time. 'I've always enjoyed the sport and I think I got more into it when my good friend Jeff (Malott, who plays for the Los Angeles Kings) told me his brother (Mike) is in the UFC and fighting in it, and then we just started paying more attention to it,' Evans said on the Canadiens' website. Mike Malott, who is from Burlington, Ont., will fight American Charles Radtke in one of the preliminary bouts Saturday (8 p.m., RS360, TVA Sports 2). 'We got to train with him for a couple of summers in a row and do some boxing classes,' Evans said. 'So I wouldn't say I'm following it along very much, but I'm always following him, Michael, around, making sure he's doing well. 'I like the sport in general,' Evans added. 'I think they're crazy athletes and you have to get into such a crazy mental state to get into the octagon and fight it out.' One person who won't be at the Bell Centre Saturday is Joe Rogan, the popular American podcaster who is normally the voice of UFC pay-per-view events as a colour commentator. Rogan, who like White is a huge supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, said on his podcast in March that he'd rather go to Russia than Canada. 'I will not be there. I don't go to Canada anymore,' Rogan said. Rogan will be replaced by two-time UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz on the pay-per-view broadcast. White was asked when the UFC might come back to Montreal again. 'We haven't even left yet,' he said. 'The fight hasn't even happened yet. We'll be back here on Saturday.'
Hamilton Spectator
09-05-2025
- Sport
- Hamilton Spectator
UFC president Dana White excited to be back in Montreal after decade-long absence
MONTREAL - Thousands of crazed fans lined up outside Montreal's Bell Centre for hours on Thursday, despite grey skies and cool temperatures, with the hopes of catching a glimpse of their sports heroes. However, they weren't there to see Montreal Canadiens stars like Cole Caufield or Nick Suzuki, but rather Belal Muhammad, Jose Aldo and other mixed-martial artists for the official UFC 315 press conference ahead of the main card scheduled for Saturday night. 'That was just a little bit of a quarter of the bowl and you heard the energy,' said UFC president and CEO Dana White in a one-on-one interview with The Canadian Press following the press conference. 'This place is going to be packed, sold out on Saturday. The Canadian fans are awesome. 'They always bring incredible energy. Saturday is going to be fun. It's great to be back in Montreal.' It has been just over a decade since Montreal last hosted a card held by the American promotion. That was UFC 186, headlined by a flyweight title bout between champion Demetrious Johnson and challenger Kyoji Horiguchi on Apr. 25, 2015. 'They deserve it,' said White. 'Some of the most fun times in my career were when we were breaking into Canada back in the day, getting (professional mixed martial arts) legalized in Ontario (in 2010). As we started to move around, whether to Montreal, the East Coast, West Coast, and everything else in between, Canada remains one my favourite places to go.' Nevertheless, 415 total UFC fight cards and 3,668 days will have passed between that spring night ten years ago and Saturday's UFC 315 fight card featuring title bouts between welterweight champion Muhammad and fifth-ranked Jack Della Maddalena and flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko against France's Manon Fiorot. It's a far cry from the six UFC events held at Bell Centre in a five-year span, between April 2008 and March 2013, four of those cards headlined by three-time welterweight champion and Canadian mixed martial arts legend Georges St-Pierre. 'As we were growing the sport and the company in the early days, there were so many of the guys, from the Chuck Liddells to the Georges St-Pierres that were so instrumental in taking this thing global,' said White. 'I don't know if there will ever be anybody who has an impact up here the way that St-Pierre did.' Saturday's card is also the first being held on Canadian soil since Donald Trump was re-elected American president last November. It comes amid growing political tensions between Canada and the United States, as Trump has repeatedly suggested that Canada should become the 51st U.S. state. 'I don't even think about that at all,' said White. 'That doesn't have an impact on what we do.' White points rather to other world events, such as the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine as well as the COVID-19 pandemic, as far greater hurdles that the UFC has had to recently contend with. 'When you're a global business, there's always going to be things every four years, or even every two years, that affect your business,' said White. 'None of that stuff bothers me. We just do our thing.' The animosity existing between the two nations does risk, however, spilling into the octagon come Saturday. During his Wednesday news conference, American welterweight Charles Radtke referenced the ongoing booing of 'The Star-Spangled Banner' at Canadian sporting events in recent months, saying 'when you all boo the national anthem, somebody's gonna have to pay for that.' He went on to trash-talk Canada, offering an expletive-laden message to any fan at Bell Centre to jeer him during his fight with Mike Malott of Burlington, Ont. MONTREAL'S AIEMANN ZAHABI LOOKS TO IMPRESS Malott will not be the only Canadian fighting on home soil Saturday. Montreal's Aiemann Zahabi is set to face off against former two-time featherweight champion Jose Aldo of Brazil in a bantamweight fight. 'I'm proud to be fighting Jose Aldo,' said Zahabi on Thursday. 'He's a legend of the sport. I'm even more proud to do it here at home in Montreal. 'I know that he said he was disappointed in his last performance, but it's a good thing my brother Firas and I prepared for the best Jose Aldo possible. I'm excited.' Zahabi will have extra support in his corner in the form of St-Pierre, who Zahabi has turned to for advice and guidance in preparation for his bout with the 38-year-old UFC Hall of Famer. This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 8, 2025.
Winnipeg Free Press
09-05-2025
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
UFC president Dana White excited to be back in Montreal after decade-long absence
MONTREAL – Thousands of crazed fans lined up outside Montreal's Bell Centre for hours on Thursday, despite grey skies and cool temperatures, with the hopes of catching a glimpse of their sports heroes. However, they weren't there to see Montreal Canadiens stars like Cole Caufield or Nick Suzuki, but rather Belal Muhammad, Jose Aldo and other mixed-martial artists for the official UFC 315 press conference ahead of the main card scheduled for Saturday night. 'That was just a little bit of a quarter of the bowl and you heard the energy,' said UFC president and CEO Dana White in a one-on-one interview with The Canadian Press following the press conference. 'This place is going to be packed, sold out on Saturday. The Canadian fans are awesome. 'They always bring incredible energy. Saturday is going to be fun. It's great to be back in Montreal.' It has been just over a decade since Montreal last hosted a card held by the American promotion. That was UFC 186, headlined by a flyweight title bout between champion Demetrious Johnson and challenger Kyoji Horiguchi on Apr. 25, 2015. 'They deserve it,' said White. 'Some of the most fun times in my career were when we were breaking into Canada back in the day, getting (professional mixed martial arts) legalized in Ontario (in 2010). As we started to move around, whether to Montreal, the East Coast, West Coast, and everything else in between, Canada remains one my favourite places to go.' Nevertheless, 415 total UFC fight cards and 3,668 days will have passed between that spring night ten years ago and Saturday's UFC 315 fight card featuring title bouts between welterweight champion Muhammad and fifth-ranked Jack Della Maddalena and flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko against France's Manon Fiorot. It's a far cry from the six UFC events held at Bell Centre in a five-year span, between April 2008 and March 2013, four of those cards headlined by three-time welterweight champion and Canadian mixed martial arts legend Georges St-Pierre. 'As we were growing the sport and the company in the early days, there were so many of the guys, from the Chuck Liddells to the Georges St-Pierres that were so instrumental in taking this thing global,' said White. 'I don't know if there will ever be anybody who has an impact up here the way that St-Pierre did.' Saturday's card is also the first being held on Canadian soil since Donald Trump was re-elected American president last November. It comes amid growing political tensions between Canada and the United States, as Trump has repeatedly suggested that Canada should become the 51st U.S. state. 'I don't even think about that at all,' said White. 'That doesn't have an impact on what we do.' White points rather to other world events, such as the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine as well as the COVID-19 pandemic, as far greater hurdles that the UFC has had to recently contend with. 'When you're a global business, there's always going to be things every four years, or even every two years, that affect your business,' said White. 'None of that stuff bothers me. We just do our thing.' The animosity existing between the two nations does risk, however, spilling into the octagon come Saturday. During his Wednesday news conference, American welterweight Charles Radtke referenced the ongoing booing of 'The Star-Spangled Banner' at Canadian sporting events in recent months, saying 'when you all boo the national anthem, somebody's gonna have to pay for that.' He went on to trash-talk Canada, offering an expletive-laden message to any fan at Bell Centre to jeer him during his fight with Mike Malott of Burlington, Ont. MONTREAL'S AIEMANN ZAHABI LOOKS TO IMPRESS Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. Malott will not be the only Canadian fighting on home soil Saturday. Montreal's Aiemann Zahabi is set to face off against former two-time featherweight champion Jose Aldo of Brazil in a bantamweight fight. 'I'm proud to be fighting Jose Aldo,' said Zahabi on Thursday. 'He's a legend of the sport. I'm even more proud to do it here at home in Montreal. 'I know that he said he was disappointed in his last performance, but it's a good thing my brother Firas and I prepared for the best Jose Aldo possible. I'm excited.' Zahabi will have extra support in his corner in the form of St-Pierre, who Zahabi has turned to for advice and guidance in preparation for his bout with the 38-year-old UFC Hall of Famer. This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 8, 2025.
