Connect with us

MMA

Matt Brown: Ian Machado Garry has championship potential but Islam Makhachev is the ‘wrong guy at the wrong time’

Published

on

Matt Brown: Ian Machado Garry has championship potential but Islam Makhachev is the ‘wrong guy at the wrong time’

Ian Machado Garry is finally getting his shot at UFC gold on Saturday, but he faces a daunting task going up against the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the sport in Islam Makhachev.

Currently riding a remarkable 16-fight win streak, Makhachev has effectively looked unstoppable at both lightweight and welterweight. He's heavily favored to win on Saturday night but Garry is obviously gunning for the upset and his chance to shock the world by beating Makhachev to win the title.

Retired UFC welterweight Matt Brown believes Garry has everything necessary to become champion one day, but he just doesn't see how the always outspoken Irishman gets past a brick wall like Makhachev.

“He is an extremely skilled guy,†Brown said about Garry on the latest episode of The Fighter vs. The Writer. “I've given him praises for a long time. I think he's got championship material in him. I don't doubt that he can make this a good fight. He's just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Had he got a fight with Jack Della Maddalena, I think it would be a 50/50 fight. But here's Islam Makhachev, the wrong guy at the wrong time.

“So much of that is in this sport. So much comes down to timing and matchups. It's just unfortunate for Ian. I think he does have championship potential. I'd love to see him against the other top guys, the [Carlos] Prates, Michael Morales and guys like that. But Islam is just about as bad of a matchup as you could possibly put together.â€

In the simplest terms as far as strategy goes, Garry almost certainly has to stop Makhachev's takedowns if he hopes to have any success on the feet.

While Garry is certainly an elite striker, he's not known for having true knockout power, which means he may have to outpoint Makhachev for 25 minutes to get the job done at UFC 330.

Anything is possible but Brown just doesn't see how Garry stays off the ground for the entire fight because Makhachev could potentially land one big takedown and his opponent never gets up again.

“He's got to stop his takedowns,†Brown said. “That's the big thing and then somehow win on points on the feet or land some big shots to make Islam a little bit shy of coming in again or lands some big shots and get a knockout, which Ian is just not known for. It's not like it couldn't happen. We still get these matchups from 1990 all the time: Striker versus grappler. Of course, Ian has good grappling and Islam has good striking so it's not as pure as it used to be, but I think we know very clearly what both people's game plans are here and it's just a matter of who can implement it.

“When you have someone at the level of Islam and his wrestling, it's just hard to imagine someone is going to catch up to that unless they've been wrestling their whole life.â€

On the feet, Garry may have an advantage but Brown says it's not as lopsided as the fight hitting the floor. Makhachev may not be known as an elite striker but he can handle himself in those exchanges and because he doesn't have to fear Garry's power as much, he can not only survive but potentially thrive.

“The biggest issue here is Ian being more of a decision guy and not really a power striking, knockout guy, Islam might be able to make some mistakes on the feet,†Brown explained. “Let's say Ian is able to keep it on the feet, Islam can still make mistakes theoretically, he can go a little bit further to get the takedown because he's not at risk.

“But again hypothetically on paper, if Ian makes one mistake on the ground, that's probably going to be it. You can't do silly things on the ground with Islam Makhachev. Charles Oliveira found that out.â€

Because Makhachev is such a nightmare matchup, Brown says Garry's only real chance is putting on an absolutely flawless performance and it's just hard for anybody to do that in a five-round fight. At some point, Brown anticipates that Garry is going to make a mistake and that's all Makhachev needs to seize the opening to finish the fight.

“Islam can make some mistakes, but Ian really can't,†Brown said. “He can't really make mistakes. Because Islam will capitalize on those mistakes. He has to fight the perfect fight. Islam doesn't really have to fight the perfect fight. He's just got to fight his fight.â€

Listen to new episodes of The Fighter vs. The Writer every Tuesday with audio only versions of the podcast available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and iHeartRadio

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

MMA

Ex-UFC fighter Sedriques Dumas takes down costumed fan in arena brawl

Published

on

Ex-UFC fighter Sedriques Dumas takes down costumed fan in arena brawl
Sedriques
Dumas had an eventful night at Duel Arena 1.

Dumas (10-5) attended Duel Arena 1 on Aug. 29 at Kia Center in
Orlando, Florida. The former
Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter is no stranger to
controversy and got into a brawl at the event, requiring
intervention from security.

Sedriques Dumas gets involved in crowd brawl at Duel Arena
1

Mike
Perry suffered a huge upset loss against Brandon
Jenkins in the main event, while Paul Miller earned a split
decision win over Ben Azoulay. A brawl broke out in the stands
after the fight between Miller and Azoulay. Dumas was seen taking
down a fan dressed in a joker costume before security separated
them.

Dumas was arrested last year in Escambia County, Florida, on
charges of home invasion, battery and possession of a weapon by a
convicted felon. Dumas fought three more times in the UFC before
being released in July shortly after he was sentenced on those
charges.

Three of the charges against Dumas were reportedly dropped while he
pleaded no contest to the accusations of possession of a weapon or
ammo by a convicted Florida felon and possession of marijuana over
20 grams.


Continue Reading

MMA

Usman Nurmagomedov fires back over Yadong Song incident at UFC Shanghai

Published

on

Usman Nurmagomedov fires back over Yadong Song incident at UFC Shanghai
Usman
Nurmagomedov has addressed his brother Umar
Nurmagomedov’s knockout loss to Yadong Song
and the discourse surrounding his immediate actions after seeing
his brother hit the canvas.

Song flatlined Umar with an uppercut in the second round of their
bantamweight clash in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship. Just as Song ended the
UFC Shanghai headliner with some follow-up hammer-fists, Usman
stormed the cage to check on his brother.

Song began celebrating and briefly crossed paths with a concerned
Usman, who seemingly loaded up an instinctive elbow strike in the
heat of the moment, but didn't follow through.

Usman denies trying to hit Yadong Song after rushing toward the
cage following Umar Nurmagomedov's knockout

Usman took to social media in the aftermath of UFC Shanghai to
address his brother's first-ever professional loss via a finish and
also touched on fans accusing him of trying to hit a celebrating
Song. The
Professional Fighters League star first downplayed the
magnitude of Umar's loss by putting things into perspective.

“People are making such a huge tragedy out of this, they should
just calm down,†Usman wrote on Instagram in Russian. “There are
things far worse. You don't have to think for long, just look at
what is happening in the world.â€

He then denied that he intended to hit Song and slammed those
criticizing him.

“And regarding the claims that I supposedly wanted to hit his
opponent, if I had wanted to, I would have hit him,†Usman added.
“You angry, petty, and jealous people. Your problem is that you
have never had and never will never have an understanding of family
love.â€

Usman is currently a free agent, having exhausted his PFL contract.
He is rumored to be signing with the UFC once his exclusive 90-day
negotiation window with the PFL concludes.

Continue Reading

MMA

Dan Hooker doubts Ilia Topuria would risk Usman Nurmagomedov fight

Published

on

Dan Hooker doubts Ilia Topuria would risk Usman Nurmagomedov fight
Dan
Hooker believes he's the perfect fighter to welcome other
lightweights to the
Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Hooker (24-14) is scheduled to welcome former two-division
KSW champ Salahdine
Parnasse (23-2) to the UFC in enemy territory at
UFC Paris on Sept. 5. With the
Professional Fighters League looking to retain Nurmagomedov
(22-0) and the UFC rumored to have strong interest in the Russian,
Hooker is willing to take on the unbeaten lightweight.

Dan Hooker offers to welcome Usman Nurmagomedov to the UFC for
‘danger money'

Nurmagomedov is currently the most sought-after free agent in mixed
martial arts after having exhausted his PFL contract. With the
Dagestani hinting at a UFC signing, Hooker believes he is the ideal
opponent for the latest PFL lightweight champ's Octagon debut.

While some fans are calling for a matchup between Nurmagomedov and
Ilia
Topuria, Hooker is certain Topuria won't take the risky
matchup. The UFC veteran also believes that most top UFC
lightweights won't take the same risk and he recently reiterated
that he doesn't mind putting himself on the line if he's
compensated accordingly.

Hooker also notes that he has previously welcomed former Bellator
champion Michael
Chandler to the UFC.

“Who's a better welcoming party? It was the same thing with
Chandler; it's the same thing with this Parnasse guy and it will be
the same thing with Usman,†Hooker told Submission Radio. “No one
else will take the fight. People are like, ‘Usman's gonna come in
and fight Ilia Topuria.' Be serious, you think Ilia Topuria is
gonna take the risk of fighting an unranked, non-UFC fighter? No
one else is willing to take the risk… None of these other guys in
the division want to risk it for the biscuit. So, they call up Dan
Hooker; they offer him a bit of danger money and he welcomes these
boys to the big leagues.â€

Continue Reading
Advertisement

OUR NEWSLETTER

Subscribe Us To Receive Our Latest News Directly In Your Inbox!

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

Trending