A promising young Australian killer is back.<\/p>\n
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Bantamweight Cody Haddon finally makes his return at UFC 322<\/a> this weekend (Sat., Nov. 15, 2025), taking on red-hot prospect<\/a> Malcolm Wellmaker inside the iconic Madison Square Garden in New York City.<\/p>\n Haddon made his UFC debut last October \u2014 just one month after earning his contract on Contender Series<\/a> \u2014 and scored a unanimous decision win over Dan Argueta in a fun, underrated scrap<\/a>.<\/p>\n And then, poof! Haddon vanished.<\/p>\n He briefly resurfaced when he was booked to face<\/a> Aleksandre Topuria at UFC 312, but was forced to withdraw with an injury \u2014 the beginning of a frustrating stretch that kept him out of action for more than a year.<\/p>\n Haddon told UFC.com<\/a> he fractured his foot a few weeks before UFC 312 after kicking a training partner\u2019s knee, sidelining him in a boot for eight weeks. Then, literally the day he was cleared to train again, he suffered a partially torn lateral collateral ligament while rolling with a teammate.<\/p>\n At just 27 years old, back-to-back injuries had him questioning everything.<\/p>\n \u201cIt makes you just start questioning \u2018is my body even capable of doing this shit?\u2019 because every single time there seems to be some problem that happens,\u201d Haddon told UFC.com \u201cI started comparing myself to other people, like, \u2018What am I doing that they aren\u2019t doing?\u2019 or \u2018Am I doing something wrong? Am I cutting corners?\u2026It\u2019s quite f\u2014king depressing, bro, because you put everything into it and your body goes \u2018F you!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Now fully healthy, Haddon \u2014 one of Australia\u2019s brightest young prospects \u2014 returns to face Wellmaker, who has had a breakout rookie year with back-to-back knockout wins<\/a> in devastating fashion (watch highlights<\/a>).<\/p>\n Obviously, the spotlight will be on Wellmaker, and rightfully so. But Haddon is a dangerous, overlooked fighter who could very well steal all of Wellmaker\u2019s shine.<\/p>\n Keep your eyes peeled for this one \u2014 it\u2019s a banger waiting to happen.<\/p>\n