Discover expert UFC 322 predictions for a Saturday pay-per-view card headlined by a welterweight title matchup between Jack Della Maddalena and Islam Makhachev.

UFC 322 Expert Picks: Predictions for the Main Card

The biggest card of the year takes place Saturday at Madison Square Garden, featuring No. 2 pound-for-pound fighter Islam Makhachev looking to move up to welterweight and claim a new belt against Jack Della Maddalena. In the co-main event, the female GOAT may be crowned, as Zhang Weili looks to take the flyweight strap from Valentina Shevchenko.

As a reminder, the following selections are purely picks. If you’re looking for betting or fantasy-specific breakdowns of these fights, check out the following articles on RotoWire:

UFC 322 DraftKings Picks
UFC 322 Betting Picks
UFC 322 Fight Breakdowns
UFC 322 DFS Preview

We also have a MMA DFS Lineup Optimizer to try if you’re looking to try out different combinations of fighters or generate multiple lineups, plus UFC 322 odds from every major sportsbook.

MMA Expert Picks & Predictions: UFC 322 Pay-Per-View CardMATCHUP

WEIGHT 

CLASS

JONJAKECHRIS

(C) Jack Della Maddalena (+220) vs.

Islam Makhachev (-270)

Welterweight
Championship

MakhachevMakhachevMakhachev(C) Valentina Shevchenko (-130) vs.
Zhang Weili (+110)

Women’s
Flyweight
Championship

ZhangZhangZhangSean Brady (-142) vs.
Michael Morales (+120)

Welterweight

MoralesMoralesMoralesLeon Edwards (+164) vs.
Carlos Prates (-198)

Welterweight

PratesPratesPratesBenoit Saint-Denis (-215) vs.
Beneil Dariush (+165)

Lightweight

Saint-DenisSaint-DenisDariush     UFC 322 RECORD 0-00-00-02025 RECORD 32-2030-2222-302025 PERCENTAGE .615.577.4232024 RECORD 45-1941-2339-252024 PERCENTAGE .703.641.6102023 RECORD 42-2544-2335-322023 PERCENTAGE .627.657.5222022 RECORD 34-2740-2125-262022 PERCENTAGE .557.656.4902021 RECORD 35-2842-2137-262021 PERCENTAGE .556.667.5862020 RECORD 36-1834-2028-262020 PERCENTAGE .667.630.5192019 RECORD 39-1935-2332-262019 PERCENTAGE .672.603.552ALL-TIME  358-218363-213 287-235ALL-TIME PERCENTAGE .622.630.550 

MATCHUP

WEIGHT 
CLASS

JOE
“SUNTZU”

COLE     DRAKE

(C) Jack Della Maddalena (+220) vs.

Islam Makhachev (-270)

Welterweight
Championship

MakhachevDella MaddalenaMakhachev(C) Valentina Shevchenko (-130) vs.
Zhang Weili (+110)

Women’s
Flyweight
Championship

ZhangShevchenkoZhangSean Brady (-142) vs.
Michael Morales (+120)

Welterweight

BradyBradyMoralesLeon Edwards (+164) vs.
Carlos Prates (-198)

Welterweight

EdwardsPratesPratesBenoit Saint-Denis (-215) vs.
Beneil Dariush (+165)

Lightweight

Saint-DenisDariushSaint-Denis     UFC 322 RECORD 0-00-00-02025 RECORD 29-2332-2034-182025 PERCENTAGE .558.615.6542024 RECORD 40-2440-2443-212024 PERCENTAGE .625.625.6722023 RECORD 41-2644-2336-312023 PERCENTAGE .612.657.5372022 RECORD 38-2339-2239-222022 PERCENTAGE .623.639.6392021 RECORD 38-2543-2117-142021 PERCENTAGE .603.672.5482020 RECORD 36-18N/AN/A2020 PERCENTAGE .667N/AN/A2019 RECORD 34-24N/AN/A2019 PERCENTAGE .586N/AN/AALL-TIME 293-182195-108169-106ALL-TIME PERCENTAGE .617.644.615

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THE PICKERS

Jon Litterine: RotoWire lead MMA beat writer and scribe for our weekly DrafKings preview. Lead analyst on the RotoWire MMA Podcast. Follow him on Twitter at @JonLitterine.

Jake Letarski: RotoWire.com Operations Manager, plus MMA and NCAA Hoops Senior Editor. Host on the RotoWire MMA Podcast and guest on the RotoWire Fantasy Football Podcast. Follow him on Twitter at @RotoJake.

Chris Olson: Contributor at RotoWire to “Fight IQ, presented by RotoWire,” as well as The MMA Mashup, DFS Baseball, a MMA gambling columnist and fight recaps. Follow him on Twitter at @RealChrisOlson.

Joe “SunTszu”: Known more commonly by his Twitter handle @SunTszu, Joe is a Hedge Fund Executive by day and high-volume DFS player by night. He is a 2x “Bracket Challenge” & “Gotham qualifier. You can also find him as one of the original contributors of “Fight IQ, presented by RotoWire,” a DFS-centric video breakdown. He is also a co-creator of the “Creating Alpha in DFS” podcast.

Cole Shelton: Cole Shelton is a full-time sports writer focusing on MMA. His work has appeared on BJPenn.com, CBC Sports, Sports Betting Dime and Blue Jays Nation. He currently pens the MMA Best Bets column on RotoWire. Follow him on Twitter at @ColeShelton91.

Drake Burden: Drake is a proven DFS winner with multiple four-figure paydays under his belt. He took an interest to writing MMA during the pandemic and is active in various Discords and other social media communities. Follow him on Twitter at @DBurdz.

RotoWire has the latest in UFC betting odds & fighter prop bets for every event, plus compares markets across multiple legal sportsbooks.