Ian Machado Garry’s first UFC title shot against welterweight champion Islam Makhachev at UFC 330 is drawing serious attention from analyst Din Thomas.
Garry is set to challenge Makhachev in the main event on Aug. 15 at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, a matchup that will also see Makhachev attempt to break the record for most consecutive wins in UFC history.
Speaking on “The Bohnfire” podcast with MMA Junkie senior reporter Mike Bohn, Thomas urged fans not to overlook Garry. “Ian Garry's really good, and sometimes we forget how good he is because we want to not like him, because he says things or does things,” Thomas said.
“Or when we vilify a fighter, we tend to hang onto that, and we've done that with Ian Garry. Whatever he did in the past, we tend to hang onto that and then we also forget how good he really is. He's got great footwork. He's got a really high IQ for fighting. He doesn't make a lot of mistakes.”
Thomas pointed to Garry’s wins over Michael Page and Carlos Prates as key evidence. “So, the fact that he's able to find ways to beat guys that nobody else can beat makes him a very dangerous opponent for Islam.” He added, “I know there were questions to do with do we want to see Islam fight Michael Morales, or do we want to see him fight Carlos Prates? But Ian Garry is a very worthy opponent,” and concluded, “I would not be surprised to see an upset.”
