Eddie Alvarez believes Jack Della Maddalena should hit pause on his career to rediscover the mindset that carried him to UFC gold.
Della Maddalena, now 18-4 in MMA and 8-2 in the UFC as stated in the article, saw his long surge halted after an 18-fight winning streak and a run as UFC welterweight champion. He lost his title in a ground-dominant defeat to Islam Makhachev at UFC 322, then was outstruck and finished by Carlos Prates at UFC Fight Night 275 at RAC Arena in Perth, Western Australia.
Alvarez, who has gone from UFC champion to a losing skid himself, framed the post-title road as uniquely treacherous. "It's very difficult to climb back and fight guys who aren't as well known, but they're even more dangerous than the well known guys," he said.
He suggested Della Maddalena should openly step back and reset his motivation. "So, it feels like you're taking a step backwards, and it's a tough spot to be in as a fighter. I feel like when you get there to that mountain top, I think the best thing to do is to tell the promotion, 'Hey, I'm taking some time off. I need time to build up gratitude to be able to get my fight again.'"
Alvarez pointed to gratitude and excitement as key intangibles. "Forget about the money, forget about the rankings, 'I need to grow gratitude.' Maybe Jack just takes a bit of time off and grows that again... Sometimes that excitement and that gratitude is the defining factor of whether you win them fights."
Della Maddalena captured the welterweight title by defeating Belal Muhammad as an underdog at UFC 315.
