UFC 330 Care Package
Islam Mackhachev vs. Ian Garry at UFC 330
Hello from the Movement Martials! This weekend we have a somewhat understated card, one that has a lot of consequence, some sneaky good matchups, and a straw weight title fight determining the next woman to lose to Zhang Weili. Given I’ve only extensively written about two men on this card, lets jump right in and give you all the analysis I’ve done that you should easily get through before the fights tonight.
Islam Makhachev vs. Ian (Machado) Garry
While Ian Garry has become one of the most insufferable people in the sport, especially as of late, Islam Makhachev has continued his stoic place at the pinnacle of the sport. If he can overcome a title defense in a second weight class, he will inarguably be the sports P4P best talent, and one of the best talents the sport has ever seen. A slick counter striking game, unbelievable top pressure, and potent finishing ability mean Garry has a mountain to surmount ahead of him.
Garry is consistently one of the best strategists in the sport, and though he can take his eye off the ball late and reach a bit of a ho-hum rhythm when fights are going his way, I am intrigued every time he comes out nonetheless. He looked stellar for about 23 minutes against Carlos Prates, but his dynamism is something of a different ilk than the current welterweight champion. He faced his staunchest grappling test against the perennially injured Shavkat Rakhmanov, and showed a surprising competency against upper body grappling against the fence, where Makhachev finds himself in nearly every fight.
Unlike Rakhmanov however, Makhachev is just as comfortable shooting on the legs, where he secured just about every takedown in his domination of JDM.
Before the fight, I did believe JDM would trouble the Dagestani. His scrambling from the bottom certainly avoided his finish by submission, but he was simply too deflated by the later rounds to confidently mount a counter attack. Garry’s strategy, length, and anti-wrestler weapons he showed against Belal Muhammad are sure to give Makhachev pause, but I am not confident in his ability to maintain this over five rounds or even consistently defend against Islam’s grappling. Makhachev himself is a very composed striker, so finding openings for counters won’t come easy unless he actually bothers his opponent enough to force them.
I can’t see Garry troubling Makhachev in the same way Dustin Poirier:
or even Alexander Volkanovski did, but it does remain to be seen. Ilia Topuria was on the wrong end of one of the most shocking and spectacular performances in UFC history while defending up a weight class, and I see Garry’s chances as far better than Gaethje’s were. This sport has a funny way of proving me wrong however, so it remains to be seen!
In the comments below, let me know:
Shat you’re most looking forward to on this card (be specific!)
What you’ve taken from Garry or Makhachev’s game to amplify your own training, and
What you’d like to see from me next, fighting or otherwise.
Enjoy the fights and as always God Bless!