Ian Machado Garry is continuing his relentless pursuit of a place in the co-main event of Conor McGregor’s first fight in three years.
The Dublin fighter made the move from other sports into MMA as a teenage after watching McGregor during his rise to the top of the UFC during the mid-2010s. And since joining the UFC’s ranks in November 2021, he has been very public about his dream of sharing the card with his idol.
However, McGregor has been out of action since before Garry was signed to the promotion due to a broken leg he suffered at UFC 264 against Dustin Poirier. His fight with Michael Chandler at UFC 303 will be his first bout since then, with record numbers expected to be raked in for his comeback fight.
UFC 303 undercard confirmed as Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler becomes official
Last week as tickets went on sale for McGregor’s return to the octagon the promotion confirmed seven fights for the event’s undercard. Much to Garry’s annoyance, that included a co-main event between Jamahal Hill and Khalil Rountree.
Garry had previously been teasing a spot as the penultimate fight for UFC 303. And as his feud with Colby Covington reached a boiling point, fans presumed that the pair would meet in an exciting welterweight showdown with real world title implications.
However, it now seems that the fight is slipping away from Garry, who says that the reason he’s being given for not getting the fight is a foot injury for his opponent. Covington did claim to suffer a broken foot during his fight with Leon Edwards at UFC 296 in Las Vegas.
Colby Covington declares Ian Machado Garry is ‘a nobody’ as fight talks stall
“There’s this kid that’s been calling me out,” Covington told the Twins Podcast. “This kid, Ian Garry, he’s a nobody. I gave him some stipulations and said, ‘Hey, man. If you wanna fight me, you have to show me you’re serious about business,’ because when I do business, I’m serious about it.
“I show up to every fight, I’ve never pulled out of one fight. I’ve been injured, I’ve been sick, but I always show up and do my business, because I love the UFC as the greatest organisation in the world. So, he has to show me he’s serious.
“He was supposed to be on my last event. He pulls out the day of the press conference, because he knew I was gonna be on stage and we’re gonna have some beef. So, that shows me that he’s not serious.”
Garry was forced out of a fight with Vicente Luque on the UFC 296 card due to contracting pneumonia during fight week. He was not the only fighter on the card to be removed due to illness as Randy Brown was also pulled from the event.
Ian Machado Garry mocks Colby Covington’s ‘cardio king’ nickname as he brands rival ‘little whimp’
In a new video posted to social media today, Garry claimed that he was being told Covington has a “sore foot”, which is his reason for refusing to sign for the fight. He can be seen in the video intensely exercising in between jabs at his rival.
“You want to call Colby the cardio king?” Garry asked his cameraman. “Let’s find out. If Colby finds himself to be the cardio king let’s see if he’ll show up June 29, co-main event McGregor vs Chandler and let’s see if he’ll put that to the test.
“Little whimp, he doesn’t want any of this smoke. His foot’s sore. Did you know that? His foot’s sore, he broke his foot in December, it’s April. It’ll be six months by June, but no, his foot’s sore. Vamos Colby… No, I’m not going to out-cardio him, I’m going to finish him in one. I don’t need any cardio for Colby. This [exercise] is for the rest of the division for when I dominate.”