Islam Makhachev makes UFC history with 17th straight win. Islam Makhachev successfully defended his UFC welterweight championship against Ian Machado Garry in the UFC 330.
Fight fans were treated to another explosive UFC weekend as UFC 330 took place on Saturday, August 15, 2026, at the Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The main event featured a blockbuster welterweight title fight between reigning champion Islam Makhachev and Ian Machado Garry, who stepped into the Octagon looking to claim the biggest victory of his career.
Islam Makhachev entered UFC 330 riding one of the most impressive winning streaks in UFC history. He had won 16 straight fights, with his most recent victory coming over Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 322 in November 2025. Makhachev dominated the five-round contest to win a unanimous decision and capture the UFC welterweight title, becoming a two-division champion.
Before moving up to welterweight, Makhachev had also defeated Renato Moicano by first-round submission at UFC 311 and Dustin Poirier by fifth-round submission at UFC 302. His last defeat came against Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284 in February 2023, when Makhachev won a close unanimous decision. Since then, he had remained unbeaten.
Ian Machado Garry also arrived in Philadelphia with strong momentum. The Irish contender had won his previous two fights, defeating Carlos Prates by unanimous decision in April 2025 before following it up with another unanimous decision victory over former champion Belal Muhammad in November. Those victories came after the only loss of Garry’s professional career. Shavkat Rakhmonov handed him a unanimous decision defeat at UFC 310 in December 2024, ending Garry’s unbeaten run. Garry bounced back with wins over Prates and Muhammad, putting himself right back into title contention. Before facing Rakhmonov, Garry had built an impressive UFC run with wins over Michael Page, Geoff Neal and Neil Magny, among others. His record stood at 17-1 heading into UFC 330, while Makhachev carried a 28-1 record and a 16-fight UFC winning streak.
The fight began and Makhachev immediately showed that he wasn’t interested in allowing Garry to settle into a striking rhythm. He opened with leg kicks before Garry began pressing forward with straight punches. Makhachev then changed levels, shot for Garry’s leg and secured the takedown. Once he got Garry down, Makhachev’s top game took over. He maintained a tight grip and stayed glued to Garry as the challenger tried to work back to his feet. Garry eventually made it upright, but Makhachev drove him straight to the fence and continued working from the clinch. Makhachev landed knees to Garry’s hip while keeping him pinned against the cage. There wasn’t a huge amount of damage, but Makhachev completely controlled the position and dictated where the fight took place.
Garry came out with more urgency, throwing kicks from range and refusing to remain overly cautious after being taken down in the opening round. Makhachev continued stalking his opponent, but the biggest moment of the round came when Makhachev landed a massive head kick that dropped Garry. Garry quickly got back to his feet, but he was visibly hurt. Makhachev immediately smelled the opportunity, closed the distance and dumped Garry back to the canvas.
From there, Makhachev applied suffocating pressure. Garry worked desperately to get back up while Makhachev stayed heavy on top, forcing him to carry the champion’s weight and draining his gas tank.
Round three began and Garry finally began finding his rhythm. The challenger used kicks to keep Makhachev at range and did a much better job of preventing the champion from getting comfortable in the pocket. Makhachev eventually shot for another takedown, but Garry responded brilliantly. Garry reversed the position, got back to his feet and landed several strikes. He then connected with a head kick that got Makhachev’s attention before following up with an effective oblique kick. For the first time in the fight, Garry was able to dictate the range and force Makhachev to reset. It was a much-needed round for Garry, who showed that his striking could cause problems when he was able to keep the fight standing.
Garry carried his momentum into the fourth, repeatedly attacking Makhachev’s lead leg with the oblique kick and mixing in hard body kicks. Makhachev went back to his wrestling, shooting for a single-leg. Garry defended well initially and forced a scramble, but Makhachev stayed relentless and eventually completed the takedown. Garry was quick to work back toward the fence and began using his size to create space. He landed short shots to the body while Makhachev attempted to keep him grounded. Makhachev secured another takedown with a high-crotch lift, but Garry quickly scrambled back to his feet. The champion continued wrestling, but Garry’s ability to repeatedly get back up made this a difficult round to score. His kicks and body work arguably gave him the cleaner damage.
With the fight potentially hanging in the balance, Garry came forward looking to close the show. He worked to cut off the cage and landed a counter right hand and a straight right. Makhachev, however, went straight back to his bread-and-butter. He secured a takedown and initiated another scramble. Garry managed to get back up, but Makhachev stayed attached and continued pressing him against the fence. The champion eventually secured another clean takedown and took Garry’s back. This time, Garry couldn’t escape as quickly. Makhachev stayed heavy, landed short punches and threatened with the rear-naked choke while keeping Garry trapped underneath him. Garry survived until the final horn, but Makhachev had closed the fight strongly.
“Ian is a great fighter. Good man and I just respect him. He gave me a hard time, but I still rule every fight. Thank you for this match.” Makhachev said. “I feel guys have more power, hard to submit them, but still my game is working. I take down all my opponents, give them a hard time there.”
Makhachev’s game plan ultimately proved decisive. Garry had his best moments in the third and fourth rounds, using his kicks and movement to disrupt Makhachev’s rhythm, but the champion’s wrestling, top control and ability to dictate the grappling exchanges carried him over the finish line. The victory made Makhachev the UFC’s all-time leader in consecutive wins with 17, while also marking another successful defense of his welterweight championship. Makhachev later acknowledged that Garry gave him a difficult fight and praised the challenger’s improved grappling.
