Since Ian Garry claims he’s the future of the welterweight division, there’s no better person for him to train with than the division’s current champion.
Garry, the former Cage Warrior welterweight champion, made his UFC debut this past year, securing a first-round knockout over Jordan Williams at UFC 268. The Irish prospect currently trains out of Sanford MMA, home to some of the top 170-pound talent in the world, including Shavkat Rakhmonov, Gilbert Burns, and UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. Garry stated that his training with Usman and listening to the stories was a valuable experience during his time at Sanford.
“I was kind of shocked because of his size,” Garry said on The MMA Hour. “He’s not anywhere near as big as he looks on TV, because he looks jacked when he’s on the camera. But I was speaking to the guys, and they were saying he’s not the best striker, he’s not the best wrestler, he’s not the best at jiu-jitsu, but he’s the best at mixing it up. They said, “He will get beat up on wrestling, he will get beat-up in grappling, he won’t get beat up at kickboxing but when it’s MMA, he is the best.” And that’s what we have seen in his fights. I think he’s on a 15-fight win streak in the UFC, which is insane.
” It was a joy to share the cage. He explained a few things that I could do better. The two of us were practicing kickboxing drills so it was a kind of exchange and swap between each other. Henry [Hooft] wants us to feel kicks in the arms and legs and block kicks to our heads. It was two rounds, I believe.
It’s more than just cool for Garry. The Future moved to Sanford to work full-time with the top fighters and coaches around the globe. He believes that training alongside Usman and other champions is the best way for him to achieve his ultimate goal, which he intends to make major progress towards this year.
” There’s no hurry. My main concern, my main goal, is to grow,” Garry said. To become a stronger fighter, a better martial artist and a better athlete. Diet, nutrition, strength and conditioning, and technical ability. So for me, it’s working with the team that I’ve surrounded myself, to get better and grow and grow and grow. By the end of this year, I’ll be 4-0 in the UFC, I will have fought three times in 2022, and I’ll be 11-0, and I’ll prove to everybody why I said I’m ‘The Future.'”
That journey will being on April 9th when Garry has his sophomore outing in the UFC against Darian Weeks at UFC 273. Weeks is coming off a loss to Bryan Barbarena from this past December, and Garry plans to make it two in a row for the American.
” I had never heard of him. Garry replied that he had sent the name. “I had a quick glance at his fight against [Bryan] Barbarena — he’s alright. Although he isn’t anything special, he is in the UFC. Every fighter in the UFC, regardless of their skills, should be respected. It’s his dream to fight me. But, as I have proven many times, I will go into it and win. I will find a way for me to win .”
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