Apr 26, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, UNITED STATES; Ian Machado Garry (red gloves) reacts after defeating Carlos Prates (not pictured) during UFC Fight Night at T-Mobile Center. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images

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Ian Garry Taunts Islam Makhachev; Calls Him Out After Impressive UFC Qatar Performance Against Belal Muhammad

Beating a former champion changes everything for a contender’s career trajectory. The validation from defeating elite competition silences doubters immediately. Rankings jump significantly after handling someone who held gold recently. Suddenly matchmakers take your name seriously for title shot discussions. Ian Machado Garry needed exactly this type of performance desperately.

The Irish prospect suffered his first career loss to Shavkat Rakhmonov last December. That defeat raised questions about whether he belonged among the elite. Some critics claimed his undefeated record was inflated by favorable matchmaking. Facing Belal Muhammad provided the perfect opportunity to prove everyone wrong. Now, after a masterful performance, he has laid his eyes on the ultimate prize.

The Performance That Made A Statement

Garry controlled all three rounds at UFC Qatar against Muhammad with superior striking and takedown defense. ‘The Future’ stuffed every single takedown attempt from ‘Remember the Name.’ That’s incredibly impressive considering Muhammad’s wrestling prowess and grinding style.

Muhammad cracked Garry with a solid right hand in the first round and continued pressuring forward against the taller, longer fighter aggressively. But Garry fired back with effective jabs and nasty leg kicks consistently. One kick actually swept Muhammad off his feet momentarily which was wild. Muhammad closed the distance and uncorked another clean right hand. The former champion was finding some success with his power shots.

Between rounds Muhammad’s corner urged him to slow down and be patient. The advice seemed to help initially with more hard punches landing. But Garry adjusted beautifully and went back to attacking the legs. His combinations upstairs also connected cleanly on Muhammad’s head repeatedly. This frustrated Muhammad who relies so heavily on his grappling game.

IAN GARRY DEFEATS BELAL MUHAMMAD BY UNANIMOUS DECISION!

(30-27 x2, 29-28) #UFCQatar pic.twitter.com/ouegcsaPmD
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) November 22, 2025

The final round saw Muhammad get more aggressive knowing he needed something. He opened with another hard right hand that landed flush. Garry returned fire with his own power shot immediately though. Well-timed kicks kept clipping Muhammad as Garry maintained better accuracy throughout. Muhammad worked into the clinch and peppered away with punches desperately. But he couldn’t employ his grappling enough to swing the judges.

The scorecards read 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 all for Garry. That’s back-to-back wins after also defeating Carlos Prates previously this year.

Ian Garry Makes The Bold Callout

Garry grabbed the microphone and made his intentions crystal clear immediately. He gave props to Belal Muhammad and his toughness. Then came the direct challenge to the new welterweight king, Islam Makhachev.

“I just beat the number one ranked welterweight on the planet. Belal couldn’t take me down, Islam you try to take me down. I’m the best in the world. You come into my division and you show up wherever you want in the world and I’ll be there. You’re done. Sign the contract and I will see you soon.”

IAN GARRY CALLS OUT ISLAM MAKHACHEV 🔥

"Belal couldn't take me down, Islam you try to take me down. I'm taking that throne from you, and I'm ending that continuous streak. You're DONE." 😳 #UFCQatar pic.twitter.com/OWEuHOH00V
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) November 22, 2025

That’s some serious trash talk aimed at Makhachev directly. Ian Garry believes his takedown defense can neutralize Makhachev’s grappling entirely. He just proved it works against an elite wrestler in Muhammad. Whether the UFC feel it is a good matchup remains to be seen though. The champion has several options available for his first welterweight title defense, including Carlos Prates, Michael Morales and Kamaru Usman.

(Image Credit: William Purnell – Imagn Images)

Belal Muhammad

Ian Garry

Islam Makhachev

UFC Qatar

Zaid Quraishi

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I am a dedicated MMA and Boxing content writer at The Playoffs. I was instantly hooked on MMA after watching the fight between Lyoto Machida vs. Gegard Mousasi back in 2014, and since then, i have been an avid writer with a deep love for the sport and its techniques, providing readers with a thorough understanding of the sport. My favorite aspect of working at The Playoffs is the creative freedom it provides. The diverse range of topics, from listicles and SEO to news articles, keeps me engaged and motivates me to continuously improve my skills! I aim to capture the excitement of the combat sports world in my writing, acting as the middleman between fighters and their die-hard fans. It is kind of like a referee, but with words!