Enough Colby Covington; enough Sean Strickland. It’s all eye forward to the undisputed gold now. He might model himself to be the next “Disruptor” in the UFC, but undefeated welterweight Ian Garry is ready to settle on singular tasks ahead. He is gunning for a different kind of assignment in Manchester later this month. He wants a chance at Leon Edwards’ gold at UFC 304.
The Irish welterweight outworked his opponent this past weekend’s UFC 303 pay-per-view event. He went to the ground with former Bellator standout Michael ‘Venom’ Page and outpointed him via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28). However slim — he thinks it propels him to be a backup for UFC 304: Edwards vs Muhammad 2, Live from Co-Op in Manchester.
I told the UFC two months ago, ‘When I win at UFC 303, I want to be the backup [for 304]…Look at this fight card, look at how many fights fell through. Dan Ige stepped in today! You know what I mean? Anything can happen, and I wanna be there just in case..
Ian Garry in UFC 303 backstage interview to Caroline Pearce for TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) post-fight
In the fallout, he has aimed high at names like Kamaru Usman and the stylistic challenging Shavkat Rakhmonov. Though his victory came rather paper thin and without any definitive striking at all, even Usman lauds his strategy. Page is a dangerous point-karate striker and berserker. Garry did a fine job taking matters to the ground when Page had clear holes in his takedown defense.
It goes to prove that Ian Machado Garry might actually be ready for bigger things. Garry alluded to Dan Ige pitching in on hours’ notice. Anything could happen; contrastingly, the young Irish fighter challenging Leon Edwards’ guard is not so awkward. Garry might indeed appear on the scales a day out from UFC 304; additionally, he has some plans for that.
Ian Machado Garry trusts his hand will be raised for gold, one way or another
During a backstage interview with Caroline Pearce of TNT Sports post-fight, Ian Garry reflected on his camp, family, and many other such things. He even went viral touting his Timex Octagon watch—a limited-edition 50mm UFC Rumble from blood-soaked UFC canvas.
Ian Garry looking to make a run at Leon Edwards’ championship dynamic (Source: Instagram/irishmirror.ie/IMAGO)But more than anything, Garry is eagle-eyed for gold. Before the fight commenced, he promised to work his way down to prove he was ready. While his fight did fail to garner much buzz, it did pick up momentum. Garry thinks he’s ready for the backup spot against both Edwards and Belal Muhammad.
Whether it’s Leon, whether it’s Belal; whoever it is. I respect both of those guys’ skillset and talent. I’m aware how good they are…I will be the guy to stand in and make sure that there is gonna be a welterweight world title fight if anyone pulls out. So for me, that’s next.
Ian Garry further said via TNT Sports (@ufcontnt); H/T: MMANews.com
𝕀𝕗 𝕐𝕠𝕦 𝔽𝕒𝕚𝕝 𝕋𝕠 ℙ𝕣𝕖𝕡𝕒𝕣𝕖 𝕐𝕠𝕦 𝔸𝕣𝕖 ℙ𝕣𝕖𝕡𝕒𝕣𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕋𝕠 𝔽𝕒𝕚𝕝.@Leon_edwardsmma and Team Renegade MMA had it all planned out 🦵👀 pic.twitter.com/hOFHlDc0mI
— UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) August 24, 2022
During his pre-fight interview with MMA Junkie’s Mike Bohn, Ian Garry said he sees only himself or former Team Kill Cliff FC mate Rakhmonov as able to dethrone Leon Edwards. As Garry continues to up his stock, he knows the challenges Edwards and Muhammad pose.
Nevertheless, he is eager to do his due diligence and surpass the guard. Let’s not forget that ‘Rocky’ similarly does his homework. After UFC 303, top brass might or might not take up ‘The Future’ on his offer. As such, the dynamic could prove to be quite interesting if Garry gets to shoot for the title next.
