UFC 314 and 315 Main Events Announced: Volkanovski vs Lopes and Muhammad vs Della Maddalena

Image credits: Zac Pacleb, on X @ZacPacleb

The UFC has announced the main events for UFC 314 and 315, with Alexander Volkanovski set to face Diego Lopes for the vacant featherweight title at UFC 314 in Miami, and Belal Muhammad defending his welterweight title against Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 315 in Montreal. Volkanovski, a former five-time defending UFC featherweight champion, is looking to regain his title after a 14-month layoff following his knockout loss to Ilia Topuria at UFC 298. Lopes, on the other hand, has been on a tear, earning five wins in 13 months to catapult himself into the featherweight title picture.

Volkanovski and Lopes will be joined on the UFC 314 card by a pair of highly intriguing matchups, including Paddy "The Baddy" Pimblett vs Michael Chandler and Yair Rodriguez vs Patricio Pitbull. Pimblett, a rising star in the lightweight division, is coming off a first-round submission win over King Green at UFC 304, while Chandler is looking to get back on track after a loss to Dustin Poirier. Rodriguez, a former interim featherweight champion, is seeking his first win since earning the interim title in January 2023, and will face Pitbull, a highly decorated fighter making his UFC debut.

The UFC 315 main event between Muhammad and Della Maddalena came as a surprise, as Della Maddalena was originally slated to face former champion Leon Edwards in London on March 22. However, the 28-year-old Australian is more than deserving of the shot at gold, having collected seven wins in seven Octagon appearances, including a knockout win over Gilbert Burns at UFC 299. Muhammad, meanwhile, is looking to start his championship reign in earnest, having earned the title with a decision win over Edwards at UFC 304.

Other notable fights on the UFC 315 card include a flyweight title fight between champion Valentina Shevchenko and challenger Manon Fiorot, as well as a welterweight bout between Sean Brady and Edwards. Shevchenko, widely regarded as the greatest women's flyweight of all-time, is looking to defend her title for the first time since regaining it from Alexa Grasso at UFC 306, while Fiorot is seeking to become the first Frenchwoman to win a UFC title. Brady, meanwhile, is looking to get back on track after a loss to Belal Muhammad, and will face Edwards, who is seeking to get back into the title picture after a loss to Muhammad.

The news of Ilia Topuria's decision to vacate the featherweight title and move up to lightweight has sent shockwaves throughout the MMA world, with many speculating that he will face dominant champion Islam Makhachev in his first fight at 155 pounds. Topuria, who has already cemented himself as one of the best fighters on the planet, is looking to become a two-division champion, and a win over Makhachev would be a massive statement. The UFC has not yet announced Topuria's next fight, but it is expected to be a highly anticipated matchup against a top contender in the lightweight division, with the championship implications hanging in the balance, and the legacy of Topuria's career on the line.