Ian Machado Garry has a vision on how he sees the UFC welterweight division panning out.
Islam Makhachev (28-1 MMA, 17-1 UFC) claimed the 170-pound title by dominating Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 322. On the same night, two new contenders emerged after Carlos Prates knocked out Leon Edwards, and Michael Morales knocked out Sean Brady.
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However, after Machado Garry (17-1 MMA, 10-1 UFC) defeated former champion Belal Muhammad at UFC Fight Night 265 a week later, he thinks he’s the frontrunner for a title shot.
“Everybody has an opinion on who should fight who next in the welterweight division,” Machado Garry said on his Instagram. “Here’s mine: Carlos Prates vs. Michael Morales because it is two power heavy hitters, and I want to see who comes out on top. I doubt Morales would take it because the truth is Carlos Prates hits harder. I kind of want to see Carlos and JDM too, but I am going to match Jack Della Maddalena vs. Kamaru Usman.
“I want to see if Jack can stop the takedown. Has he learned? Can he get better? Can he evolve, and has Kamaru still have the gears to beat a young prospect? And finally, the world title fight at welterweight. I want to see the champion Islam Makhachev defend his belt against the No. 1 contender in the world, Ian Machado Garry. I’m next.”
Machado Garry’s lone octagon setback came to Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 310. He has since rebounded with back-to-back wins over Prates and Muhammad to place him at No. 2 in the UFC’s welterweight rankings only behind Della Maddalena, who just lost his belt.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Ian Machado Garry names UFC 170-pound matchups that should happen next
