Jack Della Maddalena will compete in Perth to kick off 2023.
Multiple people with knowledge of the promotion’s plans confirmed to MMA Fighting that a welterweight tilt between Della Maddalena and Randy Brown will take place at UFC 284, which takes place Feb. 12 (airing live in the U.S. Feb. 11 due to the time difference) at the RAC Arena in Perth, Western Australia. Brown first teased the matchup on his Twitch channel.
Della Maddalena has won 13 straight bouts, including earning first-round finishes in all three of his octagon appearances. In his most recent outing, the 26-year-old stopped Danny Roberts with strikes at UFC Vegas 65 in December. Della Maddalena earned a UFC contract on Dana White’s Contender Series following a decision win over Ange Loosa in September 2021.
Brown is on a great octagon run in his own right as he’ll enter the bout on a four-fight win streak. “Rudeboy” went 2-0 in 2022 with a pair of decision wins over Khaos Williams at UFC 274 in May, and Francisco Trinaldo at October’s UFC Vegas 61 event.
UFC 284 will be headlined by a champion vs. champion showdown for the lightweight title between Islam Makhachev and Alexander Volkanovski.
Damon Martin contributed to this report.