Islam Makhachev successfully defended his UFC welterweight title at UFC 330, but it wasn’t just Ian Machado Garry’s fighting style that caught his attention during their five-round showdown.
The reigning champion admitted he was puzzled by Garry’s constant displays of respect throughout the contest, saying the Irishman’s repeated hugs, handshakes, and friendly gestures felt out of place in the middle of a championship fight.
Makhachev secured a unanimous decision victory over Garry in Philadelphia, controlling key moments with his grappling while extending his remarkable winning streak. However, after the fight, the champion revealed that Garry’s sportsmanship was almost too much for him.
“Honestly, I don’t understand,” Makhachev said during the UFC 330 post-fight press conference. “This is a fight. This is not something we have to hug each other every round. We’re going to war. We’re going to break the face, to break the eye. I respect all my opponents. But maybe he’s young. He respects too much.
“I respect him. He’s a good guy. Very kind. But this is a war. Look at my face. I just come to beat everything. It’s not something you have to play. This is a fight. This is not a game.”
Despite his comments, Islam Makhachev made it clear that he has plenty of respect for Garry and acknowledged the challenge the Irish contender brought to the Octagon.
While Makhachev controlled large portions of the fight, Garry proved difficult to deal with throughout the 25-minute battle. The challenger showcased impressive takedown defense and successfully prevented the champion from finding submission opportunities.
According to Islam Makhachev, Garry’s patient approach made it difficult for him to fully implement his game plan.
“Ian is a good opponent,” Makhachev said. “Very hard to fight with someone who stands and waits. He’s just waiting, and it’s very hard to show a good performance with someone like that.
“He stands, I see his leg, I try to take him down. He has some good defense, but it’s very hard to show a good performance with someone like that.”
Although Garry had his moments, particularly in the third round, Makhachev regained control late in the fight and used his wrestling to secure the decision victory.
The champion also revealed that he suffered some damage during the contest, including what he believes was an accidental headbutt that left his nose bleeding.
Makhachev said the incident occurred during a grappling exchange late in the fight and may have been responsible for the visible damage to his face.
“He gave me too many scratches,” Makhachev said. “He gave me a very hard headbutt at the end of the fourth round when I made him slam. You can see he gave me a back headbutt.
“In the fight, I don’t remember when my nose started bleeding, and right away the blood was coming out. I thought maybe I broke my nose or something.He gave me a very hard headbutt. It’s OK. Hard fight. It makes you improve, and I feel I improved.”
With another successful title defense behind him, Islam Makhachev isn’t thinking about slowing down anytime soon.
The UFC welterweight champion believes the fight exposed areas where he can still improve, and he’s already looking ahead to the next phase of his career.
“I still have to gain some weight, try to be bigger, more powerful, and I have time,” Makhachev said. “What this fight showed me and showed everybody, it’s not my hardest fight. It doesn’t matter how the fight goes, easy or hard. From the first minute to the last minute, to the last second, I’m going to war. I’m going to fight every second.”
