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It’s been over a week since UFC 330, but Dana White still can’t get over Ian Machado Garry’s behavior. The UFC president once again criticized the Irishman for being overly friendly toward Islam Makhachev during the title fight.
At UFC 330, Ian Machado Garry (17-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) had his first-ever chance to win the championship belt from the world’s largest MMA organization. The Irishman faced Islam Makhachev (29-1 MMA, 18-1 UFC), but after five rounds, he lost by unanimous decision.
After the fight, however, there was a lot of talk—and not just about the outcome. Garry faced a lot of criticism for his behavior toward the champion. During the fight, he hugged Makhachev, patted him on the back, and complimented him—even though he was, after all, trying to take the welterweight championship belt from him.
Dana White turned out to be one of the Irishman’s biggest critics. Shortly after the event, the UFC president accused the contender of lacking a “killer instinct.” As it turns out, his opinion hasn’t changed one bit in the days since.
During the press conference following UFC Fight Night 285, White once again brought up the title bout. In his opinion, Garry did a lot of good work, thanks to which he could still hope to pull off an upset going into the final round.
– You work your whole life to get to a place like this, and then you go out in the fifth round after doing all that good work. When the first round started, I literally told Hunter [Campbell], as Islam had him pinned against the cage and was trying to do his thing: “If that’s going to be the plan for five f***ing rounds, then in my opinion, Islam is going to have huge problems in the fifth,” Dana White said during the press conference after UFC Sacramento.
The head of the organization couldn’t understand why, during those decisive five minutes, Garry was wasting precious time on yet another gesture of respect toward the champion.
– I think Ian Garry did a good job leading up to the fifth round, and I assume that was the plan. And then you go out there, start hugging and shaking hands. Tell him how f***ing great he is while they’re putting the belt on you. You might never get a chance like this again, and you’ll probably never fight Islam again—who, by the end of his career, will be one of the best in history, if not the best. So you’ve got five f***ing minutes. Every second of this round counts. Don’t waste ten seconds telling this guy that you f***ing love him.
Immediately after UFC 330, White suggested that Garry lacked a “killer instinct.” However, he doesn’t know whether this is a trait that will haunt the Irishman for the rest of his career, or whether the contender will learn from this and not repeat a similar mistake.
– In my opinion, you either have it or you don’t. Or maybe you made that mistake once and you won’t make it again. We’ll see how it plays out. And one more time: I’m not picking on Ian. He’s a really great guy. One of the nicest people you’ll ever meet. But be f***ing nice once those five minutes are up.
The UFC president emphasized that he has nothing against mutual respect between fighters. In his opinion, however, during a championship fight, everything else should take a back seat until the final bell.
– Later, you can be as nice and classy as you want. You have five minutes to try to take down one of the greatest fighters of all time and put that belt around your waist. Afterward, you can tell Islam you love him, tell him how great he is, shake his hand, hug him, take pictures, or do whatever you want. You’ve got five f***ing minutes to win. That’s what I meant,” White concluded.
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