UFC might be a million-dollar business with mega fights and events, but Dana White needs saving sometimes. You see, the star fighters of UFC are humans at the end of the day, and last-minute injuries are more common than we think. When a fighter suddenly withdraws days or even hours before a fight, what happens?
Well, others are up and ready to grab the opportunity and save the day. Take Alex Pereira, for example. He saved UFC 303 and UFC 307. Other veterans like Daniel Cormier and Jon Jones have done it too. Now Ian Machado Garry seems to have joined the bandwagon as he claimed to save UFC recently.
During the latest UFC Journey episode, Ian Machado Garry proudly claimed, “God gave me many talents and many gifts, and one of them is a massive sack to be able to take a fight whenever I want. When the UFC needs a saviour, they call me. No matter if it’s 8 weeks, 3 weeks, or 2 weeks. I am always ready.”
December 6, 2024, Las Vegas, Nevada, Las Vegas, Nv, United States: Ian Machado Garry steps on the scale for the official weigh-ins for UFC310 – Pantoja vs Asakura at UFC Apex on December 6, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada /PxImages Las Vegas, Nevada United States – ZUMAp175 20241206_zsa_p175_058 Copyright: xLouisxGrassex
He also claimed not to know he was fighting Prates at UFC Kansas City and took it without knowing. In a recent interview with Ariel Helwani, Ian Garry divulged the unusual tale of him accepting the UFC Kansas City headliner against Carlos Prates. He said, I get a call from my agent, and he is like, ‘Hey, can you fight short notice?’ I was like, ‘What, short notice?’ And he was like, ’25 days.’ I’m like, ‘Yeah. Alright, sure.’ I hung up the phone, and then he rings me back and goes, ‘Don’t you want to know who it’s against?’ I was like, ‘Oh yeah, that’s probably important.”
He was brave enough to take a short-notice fight at UFC 310 against the dangerous, undefeated 18-0 Shavkat Rakhmonov as well. Unfortunately, Garry added a loss to his 15-fight winning streak by taking on someone who has a 100% finish rate. However, despite ‘The Future’ trying to save UFC’s future (pun intended), his opponent, Carlos Prates, found a weak spot against him.
Carlos Prates takes a dig at Ian Machado Garry
The pre-fight trash-talking and feud took a different turn with Prates and Garry. The duo might not have had a hot-headed confrontation, but the Irishman decided to bring up ghosts from the past and take a jibe at Prates. He posted a fight video from China where the Brazilian star seemingly gave up during the fight, and Garry claimed that he was a quitter.
Prates decided to be larger than life and give Garry tons of receipts wrapped like a present. While Garry clung to a single loss in China as if it were a lifeboat, Prates decided to dig up all the weaknesses of his opponent. As per MMA Fighting, Prates said, “He’s been in the UFC for four years, if I’m not mistaken, and he’s never headlined a card. He only won one bonus—poor guy—and now he has the opportunity to be the main event.”
“I gave him this opportunity,” he continued, before rubbing salt on Garry’s wound further: “Even though he’ll get a beating, he’ll thank me for the opportunity I gave him to make good money.” Prates garnered $50,000 bonuses for each of his four UFC knockouts in 2024, so he did have the upper hand in this case. The pre-fight squabble is already intense before D-Day. What do you think will happen during the fight? Share your thoughts in the comments.
The post “When the UFC Needs a Savior” — Ian Garry Makes Bold Claim on Earning Dana White & Co.’s Trust as the Perfect Replacement to Save Fights appeared first on EssentiallySports.
