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DraftKings MMA, UFC DFS Lineup Picks - UFC 322: Della Maddalena vs. Makhachev on 11/15/25. Alen's MMA DFS analysis to build winning daily fantasy UFC lineups.
The UFC's annual trip to Madison Square Garden in New York is always highly anticipated by fight fans because the UFC always pulls out all the stops, and it's no different this time. Former lightweight champion Islam Makhachev looks to become one of the greats who have won titles in two different weight classes when he challenges welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena in the main event of UFC 322 on Saturday. Same with Zhang Weili, who looks to become the new women's flyweight champion when she takes on one of the greatest female fighters of all time and two-time women's flyweight champion, Valentina Shevchenko. Both Makhachev and Weili vacated their titles for the chance to jump a division and challenge for a new title.
To open up the UFC 322 main card, we have a lightweight bout between Beneil Dariush and Benoit Saint Denis, followed by a welterweight fight between former welterweight champion Leon Edwards and one of the scariest strikers in the division, Carlos Prates. Also on the main card, we have Sean Brady taking on Michael Morales. The winner of this fight is going to be the next in line for a title shot against the winner of the fight between Della Maddalena and Makhachev.
In this article, I will be providing you with my fantasy MMA lineup picks for UFC 322: Della Maddalena vs. Makhachev on 11/15/25. Give me a follow on X @sumpor5. Good luck!
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DraftKings MMA Welterweight - UFC DFS Lineup Picks
Islam Makhachev, $9.2K - vs. Jack Della Maddalena
A welterweight title fight is set to headline UFC 322, as welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena takes on former lightweight champion Islam Makhachev. This will be Della Maddalena's first title defense, while Makhachev, who vacated his lightweight belt, aims to become the new welterweight champion.
He’s a threat anywhere the fight goes 💪
@MAKHACHEVMMA is looking to make history with another title win at #VeChain #UFC322[ SAT NOV 15 | 10pmET on @ESPN PPV | 📺 https://t.co/7bYpCnVWoP ] pic.twitter.com/LZVPRHfP8a
— UFC (@ufc) November 14, 2025
Earlier this year, Makhachev decided to vacate his lightweight title to pursue gold in another weight class by challenging Della Maddalena. After having one of the greatest lightweight title reigns in the UFC, Makhachev is looking to test himself at welterweight.
When he was fighting at lightweight, Makhachev had 18 stoppage wins, finishing the likes of Dan Hooker, former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira, featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski and former interim lightweight champion Dustin Poirier.
He became the lightweight champion in 2022 after submitting Oliveira in the second round. Since then, Makhachev has defended his lightweight title four times. He was last seen in action in January at UFC 311, where he submitted Renato Moicano in the first round.
Della Maddalena had a rough start to his MMA career, losing his first two fights, but since then, he's been on a tear, winning 18 consecutive fights. Out of those 18 fights, 12 have ended via knockout/TKO, and two have ended via submission. Della Maddalena joined the leading promotion in 2021 after beating Ange Loosa by unanimous decision on Dana White's Contender Series.
The 29-year-old Della Maddalena then won seven consecutive fights, earning his title shot against Belal Muhammad. Now, after impressively beating Muhammad via unanimous decision, Della Maddalena is set for his first title defense against Makhachev, who is most likely the biggest test of Della Maddalena's career.
Makhachev enters this fight with an MMA record of 27-1 and 16-1 in the UFC. He is averaging 2.63 significant strikes per minute and has a striking accuracy of 58%. Makhachev absorbs 1.55 strikes per minute and has a striking defense of 61%. His grappling has been elite, averaging 3.20 takedowns every 15 minutes. Makhachev has a takedown accuracy of 53% and a takedown defense of 90%.
Della Maddalena enters this fight with an MMA record of 18-2 and 9-0 in the UFC. He is averaging 6.84 significant strikes per minute and has a striking accuracy of 52%. Della Maddalena absorbs 4.53 strikes per minute and has a striking defense of 64%. Regarding his grappling, Della Maddalena is averaging just 0.16 takedowns every 15 minutes. He has a takedown accuracy of 11% and a takedown defense of 69%.
I’m picking Makhachev to win the welterweight belt. Della Maddalena will take confidence from the fact that he managed to stuff six of Muhammad’s nine takedown attempts; however, Makhachev's wrestling is on a whole other level. I expect Della Maddalena to have an advantage on the feet, but once Makhachev gets him down, he will look to submit Della Maddalena, and I think he'll do just that.
DraftKings MMA Welterweight - UFC DFS Lineup Picks
Carlos Prates, $8.9K - vs. Leon Edwards
Carlos Prates is scheduled to take on former welterweight champion Leon Edwards on the main card of UFC 322 on Saturday. Prates is looking to win back-to-back fights, while Edwards is looking to rebound after losing back-to-back fights.
Must-see TV every time he steps into the Octagon 🍿@TheNightmare170 looks to put on a show once again at #Vechain #UFC322!
[ SATURDAY | 10pmET on @ESPN PPV ] pic.twitter.com/ipidq7FmYF
— UFC (@ufc) November 13, 2025
Prates is on the heels of a highlight reel spinning back elbow knockout of Geoff Neal at UFC 319. He has built a reputation as one of the scariest knockout artists in the welterweight division. Prates has the highest knockdown rate per 15 minutes among active UFC welterweights at 2.08 and has knocked out 11 of his past 12 opponents. In his six UFC fights, he recorded five finishes against Trevin Giles, Charles Radtke, Li Jianliang, Neil Magny, and, most recently, Neal. His loss since joining the promotion was to Ian Machado Garry, who handed him a unanimous decision defeat in April.
In contrast to Prates, Edwards didn't look good in his last two fights and is currently on a two-fight skid. Edwards suffered back-to-back defeats, first losing his welterweight title to Belal Muhammad at UFC 304 in July, then suffering his first career submission loss against Sean Brady at UFC London in March. Prior to that, Edwards was unstoppable, going on a 13-fight unbeaten streak. He also defended the welterweight title twice, having defeated Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington, both via unanimous decision.
Prates enters this fight with an MMA record of 22-7 and 5-1 in the UFC. He is averaging 3.82 significant strikes per minute and has a striking accuracy of 54%. Prates is absorbing 4.80 strikes per minute and has a striking defense of 48%. He has shown little grappling ability, averaging just 0.23 takedowns every 15 minutes. He has a takedown accuracy of 100% and a takedown defense of 84%.
Edwards enters this fight with an MMA record of 22-5 with one NC and 14-4 with one NC in the UFC. He is averaging 2.62 significant strikes per minute and has a striking accuracy of 54%. Edwards is absorbing 2.42 strikes per minute and has a striking defense of 53%. His grappling is also decent, averaging 1.18 takedowns every 15 minutes. Edwards has a takedown accuracy of 36% and a takedown defense of 63%.
Both fighters are strikers, but their style of fighting is completely different. Prates is big for the weight class, has knockout power in both his hands, and his game plan is usually to pressure his opponents, looking to knock them out. Edwards, on the other hand, is a patient counter striker who usually likes to pick opponents from a distance.
Prates' only loss in the promotion is to Machado Garry, whose fighting style is similar to that of Edwards. That being said, Prates was extremely tentative in that fight, and I believe he learned from that mistake. In comparison, Edwards has been tentative in his last fight against Brady, against Muhammad, and he was even tentative in his first fight with Kamaru Usman.
Edwards is a better technical striker, but Prates has the reach advantage, is more aggressive and unlike Edwards, has knockout power in his hands. I'm picking Prates to knock Edwards out either in the second or the third round.
DraftKings MMA Lightweight - UFC DFS Lineup Picks
Benoit Saint Denis, $8.8K - vs. Beneil Dariush
Benoit Saint Denis and Beneil Dariush are scheduled to open up the UFC 322 main card on Saturday. Saint Denis is looking for his third consecutive win, while Dariush looks to win back-to-back fights.
God of War' is always down for a fight 💥@BenoitSt_Denis is looking forward to his home crowd on Saturday night! 🫡
[ #UFCParis | SEP 6 SAT 3pmET on @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/BmmzXFSMCl
— UFC (@ufc) September 3, 2025
The year 2025 has been a great year for Saint Denis thus far as he has scored back-to-back submission wins, tapping out Kyle Prepolec with an arm triangle choke in May at UFC 315 and Mauricio Ruffy via face crank in September at UFC Paris to end the Brazilian’s seven-fight win streak. These wins have seen him rebound from brutal stoppage losses to Renato Moicano and former interim lightweight champion Dustin Poirier.
Prior to that, Saint Denis was on a tear, winning five consecutive fights. Not only did he win those fights, but he also finished all five of his opponents, three via submission and two via knockout/TKO.
Darish was last seen in action in June at UFC 317, where he snapped his two-fight skid and got back in the win column by defeating Renato Moicano via unanimous decision. Before that, Dariush had suffered consecutive first-round knockout defeats to Charles Oliveira and Arman Tsarukyan.
Dariush was once on an eight-fight win streak, but his recent defeats have raised questions about Dariush's chin and durability. However, a win over Saint Denis would move Dariush into second place all-time for victories in the UFC’s lightweight division, trailing only Jim Miller.
Saint Denis enters this fight with an MMA record of 15-3 and 7-3 in the UFC. He is averaging 5.05 significant strikes per minute and has a striking accuracy of 55%. Saint Denis is absorbing 4.19 strikes per minute and has a striking defense of 42%. His grappling is elite, averaging 4.35 takedowns every 15 minutes and 1.6 submission attempts during the same period. Saint Denis has a takedown accuracy of 37% and a takedown defense of 70%.
Dariush enters this fight with an MMA record of 23-6-1 and 17-6-1 in the UFC. He is averaging 3.78 significant strikes per minute and has a striking accuracy of 49%. Dariush absorbs 2.61 strikes per minute and has a striking defense of 57%. His grappling has also been solid, averaging 2.12 takedowns every 15 minutes. He has a takedown accuracy of 38% and a takedown defense of 82%.
Although Saint Denis is a great wrestler and a BJJ black belt, Dariush is without a doubt one of the best grapplers in the lightweight division. Dariush is also one of the most complete fighters in the lightweight division, but he's 36 years old and has missed a step. Not to mention that he's chin is not what it used to be, and Saint Denis is an extremely durable fighter who likes to pressure his opponents.
If this fight had been made a few years ago, I would have favored Dariush, but now, I'm leaning towards Saint Denis. Dariush will have his moments in this fight, but I have a feeling Saint Denis will be too much for Dariush to handle. I think Saint Denis is going to overwhelm Dariush and knock him out either in the first or the second round.
