Conor McGregor foresees a knockout win for his countryman, Ian Machado Garry (17-1), when the Irish welterweight challenges Islam Makhachev (28-1) for the UFC championship atop the UFC 330 card at the Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia on Saturday, August 15.
It is the first time Makhachev will defend the UFC title he won when he outpointed Jack Della Maddalena in November, 2025, after a winning run at lightweight that saw him best Charles Oliveira, Alexander Volkanovski, and Dustin Poirier. Garry, meanwhile, enters the Octagon on a two-fight hot streak after decisioning Carlos Prates and Belal Muhammad after losing to Shavkat Rakhmonov.
McGregor said Garry “has the tools” to upset Makhachev, having watched him prepare at the Straight Blast Gym in Dublin, Ireland.
“He’s been doing great work in SBG, put in some solid rounds. I’ve heard about the rounds and seeing the rounds. He’s definitely going to stay safe. He’s going to be in there. Makhachev has pockets where he’s stalling, growing into welterweight a bit more. It’s a cracking contest, of course I’m going with Ian Garry. And I really believe he can do it.”
The sole loss on Makhachev’s record is a knockout defeat to Adriano Martins in 2015. Since then, he’s won 16 fights in a row. A 17th successive victory breaks Anderson Silva’s record of consecutive wins. McGregor, though, predicts Garry to bring Makhachev’s run to an end.
“How do I see it? Right high kick across the crown of the head … This goes late, this fight.”