'Lights out'… Ian Garry warned he will get 'finished' unless he stops one aspect of Shavkat Rakhmonov's game at UFC 310
12/02/2024 05:28 AM
Michael Bisping thinks Ian Garry's undefeated run could end at UFC 310.
The 15-0 Irishman is set to face fellow unbeaten welterweight contender 18-0 Shavkat Rakhmonov in a five-round co-main event at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday night.
Ian Garry stepped in to replace 170lb king Belal Muhammad, who was supposed to defend his belt against Rakhmonov in the UFC 310 headliner before withdrawing due to a foot infection.
'The Future' now has an opportunity to earn himself a title shot, but Michael Bisping insists that will only be possible if he employs a very specific game plan against his former sparring partner.
Michael Bisping sends warning to Ian Garry
Bisping says Garry must employ a 'stick and move' strategy at UFC 310.
The UFC Hall of Famer wants to see Garry fight like he did against Geoff Neal, who struggled to land his power shots during a unanimous decision defeat to the 27-year-old last year.
Bisping said: "I've said this before, you've gotta have a lot of respect for Ian Garry. He didn't have to take this fight, but can he stop the takedown?
"Shavkat Rakhmonov, he's very tall for the division, as is Ian Garry. They're both 6ft 3in and they're both competent strikers.
“Ian Garry's probably though going to dance around the Octagon and use the exact same game plan what he did against Geoff Neal. He's got to keep Shavkat Rakhmonov off him, okay? If he can't stop the takedown, he will get finished. And that is no disrespect to Ian Garry."
"He might be able to dance around, use the reach, use the range, use the movement, be fast, be elusive, be nice and crisp, be light on your toes and be dedicated enough to not allow himself to get involved into a brawl.
"If he does that, Shavkat's going to get a hold of him. If he gets a hold of him, he's going to get [Ian Garry] down. If he gets him down, it's going to be lights out."
Ian Garry backed by Joaquin Buckley
Garry was booked to face off against Joaquin Buckley on December 14 before being moved to UFC 310 and replaced by Colby Covington in the UFC Tampa main event.
Buckley believes Garry has a good chance of spoiling Rakhmonov's perfect record this weekend.
"I think Ian Garry is going to win by the skin of his teeth just like the rest of his wins that he had. Whether that's with MVP [Michael ‘Venom’ Page] or with Geoff Neal,” Buckley said.
“He does a good job of staying safe and surviving. And if you don't have the feet to kind of hunt down guys like that, where they're constantly moving and they’re constantly evading, and you set up traps, obviously, you're not going to be able to land those power shots.
“With Shavkat, he waits on guys too much… If you get in the fire with Shavkat Rakhmonov, you're going to get burned. I don't see Ian Garry running into that burning house. He's going to try to flee and evade the whole time, and I can see Ian Garry getting his hand raised by a decision."
