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Ian Garry: Boom or Bust?

In the UFC’s talent-stacked welterweight division, Ian Machado Garry has made significant strides.  Having just earned another high profile win at UFC 303, he continues to approach the title conversation.  The outspoken Irishman, however, has had his fair share of critics along the way.  This last performance only fueled their criticisms, and many doubt his ability to become a true champion.  

Image- Eurosport

Bellator to UFC

At UFC 303, Garry fought Michael Venom Page, a long-time Bellator standout who has now entered the UFC.  Page debuted in style, cleanly defeating UFC veteran Kevin Holland.  Heading into the bout, both fighters expressed confidence in their striking skills.  Fans similarly expected a back-and-forth battle on the feet.  Garry, however, clearly had other plans up his sleeve.

The fight itself proved incredibly close on the scorecards.  Page quickly established himself as the faster athlete,  landing his strikes while avoiding Garry’s counters.  In response, Garry implemented his grappling game, and took Page down.  Garry dominated round one, nearly submitting Page.  In the second round, Page kept the fight on the feet and convincingly out-struck Garry.  The third round started poorly for Garry, who ended up in bottom position early in the round.  However, he managed to stand back up and control Page for the remainder of the round, attempting another submission.  That turnaround ultimately allowed Garry to win on the judges’ scorecards.

Image – Eurosport

“The Future”

The MMA audience, which already took issue with Garry’s persona, decried this performance.  Fans labeled him a boring fighter and wrote off his chances at winning the UFC belt.  It is true that Page cleanly beat Garry in the striking exchanges.  It is also true that the current champion, Leon Edwards, can neutralize Garry’s grappling.  Likewise, he will need to show other skills in order to get past contenders such as Shavkat Rakhmanov.  But, if nothing else, Garry demonstrated the requisite tactical awareness to score a win against a superior striker in Page.  Although he may not be able to replicate this specific strategy, his future opponents likely lack Page’s unique striking threat.  Winning a UFC belt is never guaranteed, but it may be too soon to write off “The Future” just yet.

 

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