Garry enters the UFC as the former Cage Warriors welterweight champion with an 11-fight win streak, seven of those coming since he turned professional.

Two-and-a-half years after making his pro debut, The Future will step into the octagon in front of fans on one of the most anticipated cards of the year.

“I’ve been saying since I started MMA – I wanted to have fought by 19, made my pro debut by 21 and I wanted to fight in the UFC by the time I’m 23.”

The Irishman will get his wish with 11 days to spare as he turns 24 on November 17 and he is preparing to do so with Sanford MMA after moving to America after getting his UFC contract.

The Florida-based gym has fighters such as Robbie Lawler, Gilbert Burns and Ian Heinisch on the roster.

The latter had a sparring session with Garry that led him to get a cut above his eye previous to the interview after he had grazed the cage.

The unbeaten fighter praised his new gym, describing it as an “absolutely insane” place to get to train at.

“It’s a mat full of elite, world-class talent and it’s a blessing to be able to step onto the mats and learn from coaches and teammates of that calibre.”

Heinisch, along with Impa Kasanganay and Phil Hawes have been training with the 23-year-old ahead of his Stateside debut

The prospect is working under gym founders Henri Hooft and Greg Jones, as well as Jason Strout, all three of whom will corner him for the fight.

He relishes the opportunity to make his UFC debut in front of fans after the onset of the pandemic in March 2020 led to him missing out on that experience in his last four fights.

“268 is going to be the fight that I’m going to enjoy,” Garry exclaimed. “All the hard work that I put in in the last four years to get to where I am, has been an accumulation of hard work, dedication, sacrifice, all for like this moment, all for this fight…

“…Now I’ve got to go in there – fight, have fun, put on a show – and show people why I’m this f**king good, why I’ve got this hype, why people are talking about me being ‘the next Conor McGregor.’ – why people are saying I’m the next big thing in MMA.”

The fight comes less than five months after his friend, now CW featherweight king Paul Hughes was in his corner on short notice for Garry’s win over Jack Grant to earn his belt at 170 lbs.

He was kicked out of his previous gym, Team KF Martial Arts in Swords, a week out from his bout with Grant “after repeated warnings regarding his behaviour to other teammates and his coaches,” according to a statement from his former gym.

Garry’s point-of-view on the split is seen in the Curly Top documentary ‘Ian Garry: The Future’ which follows the mixed-martial artist in the build-up to his title bout.

“I had a lot of people behind me and a lot of people who wanted to be there for me, who supported me, and that’s what matters is that there are people out there that support you and no matter what you do, you’ll always find someone to have your back.”

The victory over Jack Grant proved to be the final fight for the 7-0 fighter in Cage Warriors as the UFC came calling right after he got gold around his waist.

The UFC deal has helped put Irish MMA in the spotlight it was once in – on top of Garry, Peter Queally and Sinead Kavanagh are fighting for titles at Bellator while Hughes and Joe McColgan already hold them at Cage Warriors.

He is aiming to join the likes of Conor McGregor, Michael Bisping and Joanna Jędrzejczyk on the list of fighters from the Irish-owned promotion to become UFC champions, having already joined the long list of those who have made the switch to the American promotion.

“I think it’s pretty obvious how good [Cage Warriors] are and what they do…I mean they’re absolutely sensational at what they do and they deserve all the praise.

“The fact that they got to put on shows during the pandemic and enabled us to continue our careers in fighting and show off our skill sets, while the world was shut down is massive.

“They’re an amazing organisation – Graham [Boylan] and Ian [Dean] work their asses off. It was a pleasure to be part of that organisation and be a part of their lineage and their history and now it’s time to go on and set my legacy in the UFC.”

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It’s now 7 years after that event and it’s safe to say that there was no take over. Of course, you have the obvious success of Conor McGregor who famously went on to knock out the phenomenal José Aldo in just 13 seconds to win the UFC Featherweight Championship. After that, he became the first fighter to hold UFC titles in multiple divisions at the same time after defeating Eddie Alvarez to win the Lightweight Championship. Other than McGregor though, none of his compatriots would go on to leave a lasting legacy in the MMA world.

That’s not to say that the future of Irish MMA is bleak, though. In fact, there’s a number of Irish fighters coming through that we could be hearing a lot more about in the not-so-distant future. James Gallagher, Dean Barry and Leah McCourt are just some examples that spring to mind.

The most promising of the lot, though, could be welterweight Ian Garry. The Dubliner currently competes in Irish promotion Cage Warriors where he holds a record of 6-0 and is aptly nicknamed “The Future”.

Of his professional MMA bouts, Garry has finished all but one of his opponents. His most impressive performance coming in his last fight against UFC alumnus Rostem Akman on the 19^th March where he delivered a devastating head-kick KO to the Swede in the second round of the fight.

Beaut of a finish by “The Future” @iangarryMMA pic.twitter.com/mGjYCG1XP1

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) MARCH 19, 2021

“UFC, I’m coming,” shouted Garry at the camera after the finish, showing his high levels of confidence – that’s not at all misplaced.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR IAN GARRY?

The UFC is clearly Garry’s long-term goal. However, he remains at Cage Warriors for the time being and his next bout will be the biggest of his career to date. He’s scheduled to fight Englishman Jack Grant (17-6) in June for the vacant Cage Warrior’s Welterweight Belt.

If Garry does manage to win the belt, it’ll be very hard for the UFC to ignore.

Whether he’s awarded a contract immediately or given a shot at Dana White’s Contender Series, there’s every chance we could see Ian Garry competing in the UFC very soon.

It’s all smiles… for now. Ian Garry vs Jack Grant is your Welterweight Title tournament final. pic.twitter.com/YdRG6e4I9b

— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) MARCH 22, 2021

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