For years, Australia and especially New Zealand were seen as an afterthought in the UFC. We had Mark ‘The Super Samoan’ Hunt, but that was about it.
Fast-forward to today, and the two countries are providing some of the most exciting fighters on Dana White’s roster. I thought I’d highlight the obvious standouts as well as the up-and-comers to determine whether we are indeed in a golden era for the UFC in Australasia.
The Aussies:
Jack Della Maddalena
The whole reason I’m writing this article is because of JDM.
On Sunday, Montreal hosted UFC 315. Headlined by a bout for the welterweight championship between the USA’s Belal Muhammad (champion) and Aussie, Jack Della Maddalena.
The former champ, known for his wrestling and grappling, didn’t have much of the UFC fan base on his side with the reputation of fighting for decisions. However, the American matched the JDM’s stand and bang style with the two of them putting on a brutal showcase.
A showcase that left Belal Muhammad barely recognisable, but at least he gained some new fans in the process.
On the flip side, Jack Della Maddalena is heading home to Perth as Australia’s newest UFC champion. His win over Belal Muhammad wasn’t flashy, but boy, did he land some heavy blows.
Alexander ‘The Great’ Volkonovski:
Volk is a two-time featherweight champion and widely regarded as one of the greatest featherweights in UFC history. After he reclaimed the vacant title at UFC 314 when he won via unanimous decision over Diego Lopez, he’s got to be $1.01 to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.
Volk captured his first title by defeating Max Hollaway at UFC 245. He went on to defend his title multiple times, including completing a trilogy with Max Hollaway, who currently holds the UFC ‘BMF’ title. Volk won all three fights.
The fans froth Volk.
He’s a man of the people and gives them what they want to see. He has earned multiple ‘Fight of the Night’ and ‘Performance of the Night’ awards throughout his career.
He’s been carrying the torch for a long time now, and as the current champ, I’d expect him to do so for a few more years.
The Kiwis:
‘The Last Style Bender’ Israel Adesanya and Robert ‘Reaper’ Whittaker
Kicking things off with two Kiwis in their own way, two guys who shared the Octagon with one and other, giving fans around the globe plenty to cheer about.
Side note: I’m putting these two together because of how big of a role they’ve played in each other’s careers.
The first Australasian headlined PPV came on October 6th 2019, for UFC 243 at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne. The headlining event between Robert Whittaker and Israel Adesanya set a record attendance for any UFC event, with 57,127 fans rocking up to Marvel Stadium.
Robert Whittaker was flying the flag for the Australians while ‘The Last Style Bender’ fighting out of Auckland had his first shot at a UFC title.
Robert Whittaker was born in New Zealand and became the first Kiwi-born UFC champion, but he represented Australia at the time. So, when Israel Adesanya knocked Robert Whittaker out in the second round, he became the first fighter representing New Zealand to hold a belt.
Since being crowned the middleweight champion, Adesanya defended his title five times, twice in 2020 with wins over Yoel Romero at UFC 248 and Paulo Costa at UFC 253.
Between June 2021 and July 2022, he defended his belt another three times, including at UFC 271 in a rematch against Robert Whittaker.
Despite recent setbacks in both fighters’ careers, their fighting style, rivalries and achievements in the sport have cemented their legacies within the UFC.
‘Don’t Blink’ Kai Kara-France
Kai Kara-France is known as ‘Don’t Blink’ for a good reason. He’s an aggressive flyweight who loves to blitz his opponent with his speed and power.
We’re going to get the chance to see him take centre stage on June 29th when he’ll be seeking flyweight glory.
Having competed for the interim title in 2022, Kai Kara-France gets his chance again after an impressive return at UFC 305.
If he can come out victorious, then he’ll become the only active Kiwi fighter to hold a belt. But he has some pretty impressive training partners at City Kickboxing in Auckland to work with.
Carlos ‘Black Jag’ Ulberg
Competing in the Light Heavyweight division, Carlos Ulberg is the third-ranked challenger and has earned a shot at a title fight in the near future.
His most recent fight was a decision win over former champion Jan Blachowicz back in March, which jumped him up the rankings.
Here is his interview after the fight in London.
Dan ‘Hangman’ Hooker
Dan Hooker is a warrior. Plain and simple.
He has been a prominent figure in the lightweight division for a long time with a UFC record of 14 wins, 8 losses. Regardless of the result you know what kind of fight you’re going to get when he enters the Octagon which is why us Kiwis love him.
He hasn’t seen success at the tip top like some of the other athletes I’ve mentioned, but he has played and continues to play a huge role in the growth of the sport in New Zealand as well as mentoring the next crop of talent that comes through City Kickboxing.
This video sums up Dan Hooker pretty well I thought.
With two current Australian champs, five ranked Kiwis including two gunning for title shots. Another two impressive up-and-comers out of City Kickboxing, Navajo Stirling and Aaron Tau, it’s hard to argue that we are not in the midst of a golden era down under.
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