UFC London now has a main event, and it’s an absolute cracker.
Former UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards is back, and the Birmingham native will look to kickstart a run back to the UFC’s 170-pound title when he takes on Australian contender Jack Della Maddalena.
The five-round welterweight bout will headline the UFC Fight Night event at The O2 Arena on March 22, with the winner likely to be right in the mix for a shot at the welterweight title currently held by Belal Muhammad.
Edwards lost his title to Muhammad in an uncharacteristically low-key performance at UFC 304 in Manchester. Prior to that unanimous decision defeat, Edwards had gone 13 fights undefeated, with 12 wins and one no contest.
Now “Rocky” will look to bounce back from that title defeat when he faces Della Maddalena, who has won 17 fights in a row since going 0-2 at the start of his MMA career back in 2016.

The Aussie, who won the welterweight title for top Australian promotion Eternal MMA and defended it four times, earned his spot in the UFC with a victory on Dana White’s Contender Series in September 2021.
Since then, he’s gone 7-0 in the UFC, with wins over the likes of Danny Roberts, Randy Brown, Kevin Holland and Gilbert Burns progressing him up the welterweight rankings. Now listed fourth in the official UFC welterweight rankings, he is now one big win away from a possible shot at the title.
The addition of Edwards vs. Della Maddalena takes the total number of officially announced fights to 11.
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz is set to feature in the co-main event as he takes on rising New Zealand contender Carlos Ulberg, while Liverpool’s Molly McCann makes her return to the cage to face Istela Nunes as she looks to rebound from defeat to Bruna Brasil at UFC 304 last year.
French light heavyweight Oumar Sy will look to break into the 205-pound rankings when he faces No. 15-ranked Alonzo Menifield, and English heavyweight Mick Parkin will look to move up the heavyweight list when he faces longtime contender Marcin Tybura in the biggest fight of his career so far.
The card will also feature Nathaniel Wood, Jai Herbert and Christian Leroy Duncan, as the former Cage Warriors champions look to claim home wins in front of the London fans.
And the event will also see flyweight prospect Lone’er Kavanah make his first UK appearance as a UFC fighter, when he takes on Brazil’s Felipe dos Santos.
UFC London takes place March 22 at The O2 Arena, with the action broadcast live on TNT Sports in the UK.
UFC London: Confirmed fights
- Leon Edwards vs. Jack Della Maddalena – welterweight
- Jan Blachowicz vs. Carlos Ulberg – light heavyweight
- Molly McCann vs. Istela Nunes – women’s strawweight
- Alonzo Menifield vs. Oumar Sy – light heavyweight
- Jai Herbert vs. Chris Padilla – lightweight
- Marcin Tybura vs. Mick Parkin – heavyweight
- Lone’er Kavanagh vs. Felipe dos Santos – flyweight
- Christian Leroy Duncan vs. Andrew Pulayev – middleweight
- Shauna Bannon vs. Puja Tomar – women’s strawweight
- Nathaniel Wood vs. Morgan Charriere – featherweight
- Nathan Fletcher vs. Caolan Loughran – bantamweight