Well, it wasn’t pretty. But Ian Machado Garry walked away from UFC 303 with a win over Michael “Venom” Page.
Page quickly established himself as the faster and more dangerous striker, but unfortunately for “MVP,” this is mixed martial arts. Garry turned to his grappling and jiujitsu skills to overpower his stylish opponent, taking him down and nearly choking him out in the first round.
A third round spent on Page’s back locked the decision win in for “The Future,” to the boos of those who wanted to see a stand-and-bang war. Garry was unapologetic about how he earned his win, and he’s already looking onwards and upwards to his next opponent.
“I want to be active, being active is the single biggest thing to me,” he said during the UFC 303 post-fight press conference. “I’m not going to stop training and I would love to fight again in Las Vegas in December, so let’s see who’s ready.”
“I’ve been calling out Colby [Covington], I’ve been calling out Shavkat [Rakhmonov], I’ve been calling out [Kamaru] Usman,” he declared. “Give me anyone that’s ranked higher than me and let me get my hand raised in the most fabulous style I possibly can.”
“This Shavkat, 18-0, undefeated, I’d love to get my hands on him. I’ve trained with him. I have nothing but respect for the guy. But I want to be the first guy to take his 0 and I know I can do it. I just beat the fastest guy in the division other than me.”
Looks like Ian forgot what happened during those training sessions. I don’t mind reminding him in the future. https://t.co/B4a7GesXp4
— Shavkat “Nomad” Rakhmonov (@Rakhmonov1994) June 30, 2024
“When it comes to striking and skills, I can do it,” he concluded. “When it comes to grappling, you’ve seen the growth that I’ve had. I’d love to prove it against someone like him.”
It didn’t take long for Rakhmonov to respond to Garry’s callout.
“Looks like Ian forgot what happened during those training sessions,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “I don’t mind reminding him in the future.”