{"success":true,"data":{"id":"dbb81ae3-cae5-4e99-b65e-62aba7508bbf","title":"Ian Machado Garry ‘already thinking’ about first UFC title defence before winning belt","summary":"US Edition Change Support Now × \"Clear search box\") Custom Search Sort by Relevance Date NewsNews World CupWorld Cup SportsSports CultureCulture LifestyleLifestyle MoneyMoney TravelTravel PremiumPremium More More Thank you for registering Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the si...","content":"US Edition Change\n\nSupport Now\n\n[×](javascript:void(0) \"Clear search box\")\n\nCustom Search\n\nSort by\n\nRelevance\n\nDate\n\n*   News[News](https://www.independent.co.uk/us)\n\n*   World Cup[World Cup](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup)\n\n*   Sports[Sports](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport)\n\n*   Culture[Culture](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment)\n\n*   Lifestyle[Lifestyle](https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style)\n\n*   Money[Money](https://www.independent.co.uk/us/money)\n\n*   Travel[Travel](https://www.independent.co.uk/us/travel)\n\n*   Premium[Premium](https://www.independent.co.uk/independentpremium)\n\nMore\n\nMore\n\n### Thank you for registering\n\nPlease refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in Please refresh your browser to be logged in\n\n# Ian Machado Garry ‘already thinking’ about first UFC title defence before winning belt\n\n## The Irishman will challenge pound-for-pound No 1 Islam Makhachev for the welterweight title in August\n\n[Alex Pattle](https://www.independent.co.uk/author/alex-pattle)Combat Sports Editor Thursday 23 July 2026 15:22 BST\n\n*   Copy link  \n*   Bookmark  \n*   [Comments](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/ufc/ian-garry-next-fight-islam-makhachev-when-b3020290.html#comments-area)Go to comments  \n\n## Bookmark popover\n\nRemoved from bookmarks\n\nClose popover\n\nUFC 330: Din Thomas breaks down Islam Makhachev vs. Ian Machado Garry\n\n### Your support helps us to tell the story\n\nFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.\n\nAt such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.\n\nThe Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.\n\n**Your support makes all the difference.**\n\n[Ian Machado Garry](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/ian-machado-garry) has said he is “already thinking” about whom to defend the [UFC](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/ufc) welterweight title against – before even fighting for the belt.\n\nOn 15 August, the Irishman will challenge champion [Islam Makhachev](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/islam-makhachev), [as the pair headline UFC 330 in Philadelphia.](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/ufc/ufc-schedule-2026-events-fights-july-b3004968.html \"UFC schedule: Every fight announced for 2026\")\n\nThe bout marks Makhachev’s first defence of the belt, although he broke the record for most lightweight-title defences before moving up to welterweight in November.\n\nopen image in gallery\n\nIan Machado Garry after his sole professional loss, to Shavkat Rakhmonov in 2024(Getty)\n\nWhen it came time to challenge for the welterweight strap, [Makhachev employed his wrestling skillset to dominate Jack Della Maddalena](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/ufc/ufc-322-islam-makhachev-jack-della-maddalena-result-fight-b2866091.html \"Islam Makhachev trounces Jack Della Maddalena to earn multi-champion status at UFC 322\")and win on points at Madison Square Garden, in New York City.\n\nThe result was the Russian’s 16th win in a row since his sole professional loss, while Machado Garry also has a single defeat to his name.\n\nSpeaking about his confidence, the Irishman told the [High Performance](https://www.thehighperformancepodcast.com/hp-podcast/ian-machado-garry) podcast: “All of those things go through my mind, and it’s the same with this fight now, when I’m going in to fight the world champion; I’m already thinking about: ‘Who do I want to defend against?’\n\n“I feel like you have to think about all of those things, so that when I get on the mic and someone puts a microphone in my face straight after –for the post-fight interview – I’m ready.","source_name":"The Independent","source_url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/ufc/ian-garry-next-fight-islam-makhachev-when-b3020290.html","url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/ufc/ian-garry-next-fight-islam-makhachev-when-b3020290.html","author":"Alex Pattle","author_name":"Alex Pattle","published_at":"2026-07-23T14:22:32.000Z","publication_date":"2026-07-23T14:22:32.000Z","image_url":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/5b8ZBcUc/poster.jpg?width=720","category":"world","topic":"world","tags":[],"political_bias":null,"bias_score":null,"confidence_score":null,"credibility_score":null,"factual_quality":null,"reading_time":3,"word_count":538,"view_count":0,"breaking":false,"breaking_news":false,"ai_analysis":null,"fact_check_status":"unverified","archive_status":"hot","language":null}}