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Ian Machado Garry explains why he puts Islam Makhachev on a ‘pedestal’ ahead of UFC 330 showdown

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9 hours ago

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Ian Machado Garry explains why he puts Islam Makhachev on a ‘pedestal’ ahead of UFC 330 showdown

Ian Machado Garry has talked about becoming UFC welterweight champion since the day he first arrived in the promotion, but after amassing a 10-1 record in the octagon, he's finally getting his chance when he faces Islam Makhachev in the UFC 330 main event.

In the leadup to the fight, both men have made bold predictions on how things are going to end, but there hasn't been any trash talk that truly goes over the top or out of bounds to make it personal. If anything, Garry admits that he's gone out of his way to show even more respect to Makhachev than he has some of his past opponents because he sees no reason to tear down the person almost universally recognized as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

And that's exactly who Garry wants to beat to become UFC champion.

“If anything, I put him on a pedestal on purpose,†Garry told MMA Fighting via Betvictor Casino. “I give him more respect than others because it's earned and deserved.

“I put him on a pedestal as the best fighter walking the planet right now until proven otherwise. Because that's the person I want to beat to become champion of the world.â€

Makhachev hasn't really said anything disrespectful towards Garry but he has predicted that the fight won't make it past the third round.

While he did go to decision in his most recent outing to become UFC welterweight champion, Makhachev is a well-known finisher with some of the nastiest ground work in the sport.

But Garry actually takes no offense that Makhachev is so confident in the outcome of this fight because as one of the most dominant fighters to ever compete in the UFC, he's earned that right.

“I think Islam is more than prepared for 25 minutes of violence,†Garry said. “He is a man who is dangerous in every round. He should feel confident. He should feel like he can get the job done because he's done everything to warrant that feeling.

“However, the fights aren't that simple and when he steps across the octagon from me on Aug. 16, I have my own plans. I have my own ideas on who's going to win. That's what everyone is going to tune in to find out.â€

Garry is finally getting his opportunity to compete for UFC gold after he made a slow and steady climb up the ranks, but he also had to deal with some adversity after suffering the only defeat of his career when he fell to Shavkat Rakhmonov in a close decision back in 2024.

As heartbreaking as it was to taste defeat for the first time, Garry never lost faith and he just got back to work with more determination than ever to reach his ultimate goal becoming UFC champion.

After his lone loss, Garry took out Brazilian human highlight reel Carlos Prates and then scored an impressive win over former UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad to put himself in position to fight Makhachev on Saturday.

Garry knows this is finally his chance to prove to himself and the rest of the world that he truly is the best welterweight in the world and he promises he's not going to waste it.

“It's a destiny fulfilled,†Garry said. “There has been nothing else. No other focus. No other drive. No other goals. I want to be champion of the world. When you're the UFC champion, you are considered one of the greatest fighters on the planet. That is what I want.â€

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MMA

Luke Rockhold to face Joe Pyfer in wrestling match at RAF 13

Published

1 hour ago

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August 10, 2026

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Luke Rockhold to face Joe Pyfer in wrestling match at RAF 13
Luke
Rockhold and Joe Pyfer are
set to collide on the mat.

Real American Freestyle recently announced that former
Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight titleholder
Rockhold will meet current UFC 185-pounder Pyfer in a catchweight
wrestling match at RAF 13 on Sept. 19 at Watsco Center in
Miami.

Former UFC champion Luke Rockhold meets middleweight contender
Joe Pyfer in a catchweight wrestling match Sept. 19 in Miami

While neither fighter is primarily known for wrestling, both bring
considerable grappling and combat sports experience into the
matchup.

Pyfer, 29, has since established himself as one of the UFC’s most
promising middleweight contenders. A
Dana White's Contender Series signee, Pyfer has won four
straight fights and owns a 7-1 record since joining the UFC in
2022. Most recently, he finished former UFC champ Israel
Adesanya earlier this year.

Meanwhile, Rockhold is looking to register his first victory under
the RAF banner. The 41-year-old made his promotional debut in
January, losing to Colby
Covington. He has remained active across several combat sports
since leaving the UFC in 2022, competing in bare-knuckle boxing,
karate, jiu jitsu and boxing.

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MMA

Recently injured PFL star Dakota Ditcheva wants to box for MVP

Published

4 hours ago

on

August 10, 2026

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Recently injured PFL star Dakota Ditcheva wants to box for MVP
Dakota
Ditcheva’s latest victory came at a cost.

The unbeaten
Professional Fighters League star revealed that she broke both
hands during her recent unanimous decision victory over Denise
Kielholtz at
PFL New York. While she's likely set for another stint on the
sidelines, the Manchester native has revealed her interest in
competing in boxing.

Dakota Ditcheva suffers multiple hand breaks yet again, eyes
boxing bout

Ditcheva, who improved to 16-0 with the win, said she first noticed
the damage early in the second round but kept the injury to herself throughout the remainder
of the fight. She opened up about her latest hand injury in a
recently released YouTube video.

“Breaking news, I am injured again,†Ditcheva said. “I broke my
hands in the fight. I could feel it from the moment I started the
second round. I didn't tell my corner. I didn't tell anybody. I
didn't show it this time and I didn't tell anybody until I got out
of the cage.â€

Ditcheva is now wearing splints while she waits to learn whether
surgery will be necessary. The latest injury also stems from a
previous issue with her hands.

The 27-year-old previously broke both hands and elected to have
surgery on only one of them. She explained that doctors had warned
her the untreated fracture could break again if she continued
fighting without surgery. Ditcheva clarified that she did not
suffer two entirely new fractures, explaining that one of her
previous breaks held up while another finger was damaged during the
fight.

The injury comes after Ditcheva returned from a year-long absence
to defeat former kickboxing champion Kielholtz by unanimous
decision. Although she couldn’t find the stoppage, Ditcheva
controlled the contest and reaffirmed her status as one of the
faces of the PFL.

Despite the setback, Ditcheva remains interested in expanding her
combat sports endeavors. She has expressed interest in boxing for

Most Valuable Promotions, which recently merged with the PFL.
In an X clip posted by MVP, Ditcheva said that she's
“interested.â€


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MMA

Reinier de Ridder rips training at former gym after move to ATT

Published

6 hours ago

on

August 10, 2026

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Reinier de Ridder rips training at former gym after move to ATT
Reinier
de Ridder has changed camps ahead of his permanent move up to
light heavyweight in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship.

The Dutchman is scheduled to take on Roman
Dolidze at 205 pounds next, on Aug. 22 at Golden 1 Center in
Sacramento, California. He recently revealed that he has parted
ways with
Kill Cliff FC and joined another Florida gym,
American Top Team, ahead of his UFC light heavyweight
debut.

Reinier de Ridder explains why he left Kill Cliff FC for
American Top Team

The former One
Championship two-division titleholder explains that while he
really enjoyed the atmosphere at Kill Cliff FC, the level of
training has allegedly not been up to mark in the last couple of
months. One of de Ridder's favorite coaches, Aung La N
Sang, recently opened his own gym, which limited his time at
Kill Cliff FC.

He also claims that head coach Henri Hooft has not been around much
over the last couple of months due to personal reasons and that
many top fighters allegedly left Kill Cliff FC as the level of
training declined.

“I did switch up my camp,†de Ridder told Full Mount MMA. “So, I've
been at ATT this camp, which is a big change. I've been able to
work with a lot of high-level guys, which is cool – coaches and
training partners… Some stuff was just not good at Kill Cliff the
last six months. Henri had some personal stuff. He had been out of
the gym for a couple of months. And Aung La, my guy I like to work
with a lot, he opened his own gym. So, he hadn't been at Kill Cliff
much. And a lot of big guys left because just the content of the
classes was not that good. So, it was time to make a change,
unfortunately. Cause I really liked them, really liked the
atmosphere, liked everything there.â€

After getting off to a sensational start in the UFC, going 4-0 with
wins over Bo Nickal and
Robert
Whittaker, de Ridder (21-4) suffered consecutive losses to
Brendan
Allen and Caio
Borralho, prompting the move up to light heavyweight. He's
looking to return to winning ways at
UFC Sacramento.

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