Ian Machado Garry reveals why he considers Shavkat Rakhmonov more dangerous than Islam Makhachev

This Saturday night, Ian Machado Garry will have the biggest opportunity of his career. The Irishman is set to square off against Islam Makhachev for the UFC welterweight title in the main event of UFC 330 at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia.

Ahead of the most important fight of his career, Garry has reflected on his previous matchup against Shavkat Rakhmonov and explained why he believes the undefeated Kazakh was a more dangerous opponent than the reigning pound-for-pound king.

Ian Machado Garry explains why Shavkat Rakhmonov was more dangerous than Islam Makhachev

Recently, Garry sat down with former UFC double champion Daniel Cormier for an interview. Cormier pointed to Garry's five-round battle with Rakhmonov and asked whether that experience could benefit him against Makhachev, considering the similarities between the two fighters' skill sets.

Garry agreed that the experience could prove valuable, but made an interesting distinction between Rakhmonov and Makhachev. He explained why he believes the Kazakh fighter presented a unique threat when they fought. The challenger pointed out that the 31-year-old entered their matchup with an undefeated record of 18-0, with every victory coming by way of stoppage.

"There's an argument to say that Shavat is slightly more dangerous. Just due to the fact that he had when I fought him on short notice, he had 18 fights and 18 finishes. And it wasn't like it was 18 submissions. It was 10 knockouts and eight submissions, or nine and nine. It was evenly matched." Garry pointed. 

For Garry, Rakhmonov's ability to finish opponents both on the feet and on the ground made him particularly dangerous. The Irishman believes that versatility created a constant threat throughout their fight.

However, Garry was careful to distinguish between being dangerous and being dominant. While he believes Rakhmonov had more ways to hurt him, he does not necessarily consider the Kazakh more dominant than Makhachev.

“So he was able to knock you out in the feet, and he was able to submit you, and he was able to do it in 15 15 minutes. So there was an element to me that says he was potentially more dangerous, not more dominant, but more dangerous.” Garry explained. 

Check out Ian Machado Garry's comments below:

Ian Machado Garry's Shavkat Rakhmonov experience could prove crucial against Islam Makhachev

Garry faced Rakhmonov in the five-round co-main event at UFC 310. The Kazakh fighter entered the bout with an undefeated 18-0 record, with all 18 victories coming by way of stoppage. Before the fight, many counted out the Irish star and predicted another finish for the undefeated fighter.

However, Garry put on a great performance against Rakhmonov and at one point nearly submitted him. That said, the Irish star fell short and lost the fight via decision. He received plenty of praise for his performance from the MMA community.

The fight also snapped Rakhmonov's finishing streak. Since then, he has suffered multiple knee injuries, undergone surgeries, and remained out of action.

If we look at Makhachev's welterweight title fight against Jack Della Maddalena, where he captured the title, Garry's comments seem to hold some weight, as the Dagestani star dominated Maddalena but wasn't able to finish him. However, before that, the P4P king was on a three-fight finish streak. 

The Irish star has the opportunity to snap Makhachev's 16-fight winning streak, which is tied with Anderson Silva for the longest winning streak in UFC history. Only Saturday night will tell whether Garry captures the title or the Dagestani star etches his name in the history books.