Ireland’s Ian Garry enhanced his reputation considerably in his recent comprehensive decision win against Gabe Green at UFC 276 in Las Vegas.
Garry, the unbeaten former Cage Warriors welterweight champion, turned in his most complete performance to date in the UFC on a bumper card to celebrate International Fight Week in Sin City, rarely ceding an inch of territory to his opponent en route to what was a clear-cut decision win and another 15 minutes of live experience under his belt.
Among those impressed by the Dubliner’s performance was another Cage Warriors alum, Conor McGregor, who issued a glowing review of his compatriot’s performance online.
Ian Garry was incredibly impressive this weekend. Fully immersed in it all. Enjoying every second. Willingness to engage / commit. The Potential for another “future” Irish mma ufc champion rose by a real nice margin this weekend. Congrats Ian, keep going brother! ☘️❤️
— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) July 6, 2022
“Ian Garry was incredibly impressive this weekend,” wrote McGregor on Twitter. “Fully immersed in it all. Enjoying every second. Willingness to engage / commit. The Potential for another “future” Irish mma ufc champion rose by a real nice margin this weekend. Congrats Ian, keep going brother!”
The praise was initially noted by Garry online, who responded: “Thank You! The Take Over Part 2 continues to grow, I cannot wait for your return. Let’s bring the UFC back to Dublin. It’s inevitable.”
Garry, though, elaborated on the kind words from McGregor while speaking to Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour last week, with transcription by MMA Fighting.
“It’s obviously phenomenal,” Garry said of his countryman keeping tabs on his career. “No matter what he says about me or anything to do with my career, it’s always going to be amazing. I mean, I got a f*cking tattoo on my arm because of the guy, to symbolise the whole weekend.
“To have the guy who’s done more than anyone to build this sport — he’s changed MMA, he’s brought more eyes to the sport — he holds all the records in pay-per-views. At weigh-ins, having 15,000 people at a weigh-in just to watch a guy stand on a scale is ridiculous. But to have him say something like that in regards to me is phenomenal.
“And he’s not wrong. I am going to be a champion, and it is inevitable. I know that, and the fact that even he’s seen that now, it’s awesome. It means everybody else has seen it, too. And I know how good I am and I know how good my potential is, and I’m going to get there.”
Garry added that he has several goals throughout his fight career. One of them is to become a UFC champion and another is to share a card with the organisation’s biggest ever star.
“I can’t wait for me and him to get on a card together, whenever he’s back,” he said. “That would be massive for the Irish as well. That’d be massive for me. It would be a dream come true to share a card with the guy who inspired me to do this, to follow my dreams. I’ve always had a violent mind and a way to show that off, and MMA is that perfect place for me.”
