Dana White Expresses Frustration With Ian Machado Garry

UFC CEO Dana White expressed frustration with Ian Machado Garry’s (17-2) performance during his welterweight title fight against the reigning champion, Islam Makhachev, atop the UFC 330 card which took place August 15 in Philadelphia.

Makhachev (29-1) stormed to a 2-0 lead after the first two rounds but surrendered the third to Machado Garry, who scored damage in the fourth. Prior to the fifth, Machado Garry could be seen embracing Makhachev, much to White’s chagrin, considering one judge saw a bout that, at that point, was hung in the balance.

“I think Ian is a talented guy,” White said. “If he had even an ounce of killer instinct, in that fifth round, you don’t come out and hug and shake hands. That … drives me crazy. You come out in that fifth round with a flying knee and try to finish the fight. I think this is one of those fights where Ian will go back and watch and say, ‘I wish I could do that over again’.”

Makhachev won the fight by unanimous decision with scores of 49-46 (twice) and 48-47. It was a second successive triumph in the 170-pound division for the dominant Dagestani, after previously excelling at lightweight, too. Beating Machado Garry was Makhachev’s 17th successive victory, which broke Anderson Silva’s run of 16 wins on the spin.

Makhachev’s next defense could be against Carlos Prates or Michael Morales. It would leave ranked fighters like Jack Della Maddalena available for Machado Garry’s comeback.