Islam Makhachev believes that Ian Garry 's efforts to improve his grappling will not be enough. Although the first challenger for the Russian's welterweight title (up to 77 kg) has not yet been officially announced, the Irishman has preemptively traveled to Georgia to improve his wrestling with an eye on a possible confrontation against the Dagestani champion, an initiative that, in Makhachev's view, is unlikely to be effective.
In an interview with the 'Ushatayka' channel, the champion stated that he considers it a mistake for a fighter to start a specific training camp only two or three months before a fight, especially with the goal of developing wrestling skills, since, according to him, it is impossible to assimilate this type of fundamental in such a short time.
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"Well, I've already said that it's a mistake for a wrestler to go to a training camp two or three months before a fight just to train. It's impossible to learn wrestling in a short time," said Islam Makhachev.
In the same conversation, Makhachev also compared Ian Garry to Jack Della Maddalena , his last UFC opponent, and although he acknowledged that both have similar striking characteristics, he assessed that the Australian has a higher overall level in MMA.
"Well, both ( Jack Della Maddalena and Ian Garry ) are strikers. I would put Maddalena above," concluded the champion.
Makhachev's coach says Ian Garry won't hold up in grappling.
While Islam Makhachev doubts Ian Garry's ability to improve his grappling, his coach, Javier Mendez, believes the Irishman will be easily submitted if the fight goes to the ground. In an interview with 'Submission Radio', the head of the American Kickboxing Academy praised his potential opponent's striking, but stressed that the Dagestani fighter is on another level when it comes to grappling.
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