Ireland’s own Ian Garry keeps ripping his way through the ranks of his division. Well, maybe it’s nothing more than sobbing nostalgia. But it’s certainly difficult, not to be reminded of another certain Irish fighter, with his confidence and swagger sky high.
‘The Future’ of the welterweight division misses not one opportunity to state that his stand-up skills are second to nobody. Maybe rightly so, when one realizes that Garry has a record of four wins in UFC; losing nothing but ‘a’ round.
Working Towards the Main Card
Yet his feet seem firmly on the ground. Prior to earning the 11th win of his professional career with a stoppage against Song Keenan at the UFC 285, the fighter talked to BT Sport. When asked about whether he is unsatisfied with anything that goes on in his fast-paced rise, his words offered a combination of two very valuable aspects for an athlete. He stated that; he has not yet reached the heights that his potential holds while underlining the importance of patience.
“I want to be there now, but I have to settle myself,” said Garry. Humbleness rings nice. But when it comes down to persuasiveness, nothing compares with reaping the fruits of victory.
As UFC President Dana White must’ve been impressed with the comeback TKO as much as we were, he awarded Garry with a multi-fight contract immediately after beating Keenan.
His wishes for a quick turnaround came true, as Garry’s set for another welterweight bout against Daniel Rodriguez on May 13th. He appeared on Ariel Helwani’s YT channel and discussed his future with the host Petesy Carroll.
He stated that matching up with Rodriguez makes him feel ‘deservedly recognized’. While speaking about his excitement for the bout, he also added that the thrill is due to his opponent’s ‘toughness’. That ‘toughness’ is leading the case against him, but Garry remains confident. He indicated, he’s come against ‘every excuse in the book’ throughout his career and underlined the ‘0’ in his record of eleven wins and zero losses. The levels of confidence can be understood via his metaphor, which resembles a fight against him with ‘being assaulted by 10 guys on the street’.
Training With Leon Edwards & Shavkat Rakhmonov
Yet a reality check can never hurt. Ian Garry suffered the same fate as Kamaru Usman, through the foot of his fellow training partner and welterweight champion Leon Edwards. Although it was nothing serious but a small reminder of the heights that he has to rise sooner or later if he wishes to put his hands on the golden belt.
Gary discussed a potential showdown with the champion, and had the following to say:
“If you ask Leon, ‘Leon, if you were fighting Ian on the feet, could Ian win?’ He’d say ‘Yes, he could.’” Ian Garry told reporter, Peter Carroll during an appearance on The Craic. “Leon would sit there and say, ‘Maybe I’m a bit cleaner.’ Maybe he might argue his case, but that’s not the question.
“It’s ‘Could Ian win?’ I guarantee you he’d say yes. You ask Shavkat (Rakhmonov) the same thing, I guarantee you he’d say yes. This is the thing, it’s like the world doesn’t know what my grappling is like. Everyone assumes I’m a striker, everybody assumes that I’m just all (fighting) on the feet, you take me down you can suffocate me. Then fucking do it then. Do it. Let’s see.”
Quotes via Low Kick MMA
Yet he seems far from intimidated. Irish issued a warning for Rodriguez, stating that after the fight his opponent ‘will look like he’s been smacked in the face, with a rock’.
In the aftermath of the planned victory, the Irish fighter said that he wants his next fight to take place on the same card that Conor McGregor will take on Michael Chandler. Ideally with a prospect, who is just outside of the Top 15 ranking of the division.
Breaking Into the Top 15
As he explained his intentions of going up in the ranks, the fighter didn’t hesitate to name-drop. As he has a couple of flashy training partners in Leon Edwards and Shavkat Rakhmonov, he stated that he fares pretty well against the selected bunch. The fighter even said that; if they were to ask Edwards whether Garry could win a stand-up against the champion, the answer would be a definitive ‘yes’. And of course, his claim is also valid for Rakhmonov as well.
Garry also commented on the internal relations of the welterweight division by having his say on the highly anticipated bout between Jorge Masvidal and Gilbert Burns. He said that he wanted to participate in a possible UFC event in Dublin in the near future. His opponent in this hypothetical match-up is Masvidal, if he were to lose to Burns.
With his whole career ahead of him, Garry is a prospect that can light up the division. His tall and lean physique may present the chance for him to go up a weight class in the future. But for now, his future seems to lie in the welterweight division.
How far can Ian Garry go in the world of MMA?
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images and Embed from Getty Images
