The fights Dana White announced yesterday — what changes for UFC 321 & UFC 322

UFC 322 (MSG, Nov 15)Jack Della Maddalena (C) vs Islam Makhachev for the welterweight title; Valentina Shevchenko (C) vs Zhang Weili for the flyweight title; plus Leon Edwards vs Carlos Prates on the main card.
UFC 321 (Abu Dhabi, Oct 25)Tom Aspinall (C) vs Ciryl Gane for the heavyweight title; Mackenzie Dern vs Virna Jandiroba for the vacant strawweight belt; plus Alexander Volkov vs Jailton Almeida, Aleksandar Rakic vs Azamat Murzakanov, and Umar Nurmagomedov vs Mario Bautista.
• Dana also teased a UFC event at the White House on July 4, 2026 (more details soon).


UFC 322 — New York (Madison Square Garden), November 15

New bouts announced

  • Jack Della Maddalena (C) vs Islam Makhachev — welterweight title (main event)

  • Valentina Shevchenko (C) vs Zhang Weili — flyweight title (co-main)

  • Leon Edwards vs Carlos Prates — welterweight feature

Why it matters (quick)

  • Makhachev is chasing double-champ status; Jack Della defends for the first time on the sport’s most famous stage.

  • Weili vacated strawweight to move up—shot at becoming a two-division champ vs. a historic flyweight ruler.

  • Edwards gets a high-risk, high-reward reset against a surging finisher in Prates.


UFC 321 — Abu Dhabi (Etihad Arena), October 25

New bouts announced

  • Tom Aspinall (C) vs Ciryl Gane — heavyweight title (main event)

  • Mackenzie Dern vs Virna Jandirobavacant strawweight title (co-main)

  • Alexander Volkov vs Jailton Almeida — heavyweight

  • Aleksandar Rakic vs Azamat Murzakanov — light heavyweight

  • Umar Nurmagomedov vs Mario Bautista — bantamweight

Also listed for the card (support/undercard)

  • Chris Barnett vs Hamdy Abdelwahab — heavyweight

  • Ikram Aliskerov vs Park Jun-yong — middleweight

  • Azat Maksum vs Mitch Raposo — flyweight

  • Jaqueline Amorim vs Mizuki Inoue — strawweight

  • Abdul-Kareem Al-Selwady vs Matheus Camilo — lightweight

Context

  • The strawweight belt is vacant because Zhang Weili moved up to 125 to challenge Shevchenko at MSG.


Extra: “UFC at the White House” teased

In the same live, Dana White said a South Lawn show for July 4, 2026 is in motion. More to come as the date gets closer.


Dates & how to watch 

  • UFC 321 — Oct 25, Abu Dhabi (Etihad Arena) — global PPV + regional partners.

  • UFC 322 — Nov 15, New York (MSG) — global PPV + regional partners.


What this does to the rankings

  • Welterweight (170): If Makhachev wins, the division gets a two-division champ; if Jack Della holds, he cements a new reign.

  • Women’s Flyweight (125): Shevchenko’s toughest marquee challenger since the Grasso saga; a Weili win reshuffles the top five.

  • Women’s Strawweight (115): Dern vs Jandiroba crowns a new champion and opens a fresh era for the division.


Dana White’s announcement batch reframes the rest of 2025: super fights at MSG, an immediately active strawweight title in Abu Dhabi, and a calendar built to keep the hype high through year-end—with a 2026 White House teaser on the horizon.