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Ian Machado Garry faces the biggest challenge of his career at UFC 296 this weekend on his journey to become a world champion.
Ahead of his big fight, we spoke to Garry, courtesy of Timex, who is partnering with him to promote the UFC X Timex collection of sport-centric watches.
TIMEX
In our interview with Garry, we talked about his upcoming fight against ninth-ranked Vicente Luque, sparring with Conor McGregor this summer, his future in the UFC welterweight division, and his thoughts on the UFC 296 main event between Colby Covington and Leon Edwards.
Ian, tell us about your partnership with Timex and the UFC x Timex collection.
“I like refreshing brands, and Timex is very awesome. It’s very beautiful. the collab with the UFC, their watches are also durable, just like us fighters, but they’re also beautiful like me, right?
“I fight for a living, but I’m beautiful, but I’m also tough as nails, so I’m excited. I like doing stuff outside the box like watch deals, and creating campaigns with beautiful photoshoots, that’s what me and my brand is all about.”
“We’ve always said this: we want to be like Premier League athletes. Soccer players are the biggest stars in the world, so it’s exciting to be able to work with a brand that’s creating beautiful timepieces that match my good looks.”
What are your thoughts on facing former Kill Cliff teammate Vicente Luque at UFC 296?
“So I’ve spent two years at Kill Cliff in South Florida and trained with Vicente multiple times. I got along with Vicente. I haven’t got a bad word to say about him, but he’s one of the best fighters in the world, and he’s ranked above me. Nobody else wanted to fight me, and he said yes. So I said, Yes, that’s it.
“That’s the business we’re in. At the end of the day, I want to be the best fighter in the world, and that means I need to get to the world title. So I need to beat anybody that’s fighting above me to get there. That’s the only way I see it. and I know he sees it the same way. He messaged about it…It’s about being the best in the world and wanting to prove that to the people.”
What does a win against Luque put you in the welterweight division?
“I think I have a lot more to prove and a lot more to do to earn any type of title shot… I’m number ten in the world, Vicente is number nine, and a win over Vicente puts me in the eight-seven bracket. I’d want to see one more guy between ten and five, and then I’ll go and fight two guys between five and one and then get my belt. I think that’s three more fights before I fight for a world title.”
You have spoken about wanting to create your own team, what will that look like? Where are you training now?
“So I’ve always said this. I want to create a team around me of people that care and people that want to see me succeed, people that are emotionally invested because when you’re emotionally invested and you create a family around you, everybody has the same wants and the same goals.”
“And I’m building the team I’ve got. I’ve got a lot of like pieces to the puzzle, and the truth is the world will show me what’s next, but at the moment I’m super happy, I’m training at Chute Boxe in Brazil and I love the guys there, I’ve always been a massive fan of them. What I’ve seen from them with Charles Oliveira and the energy they have and the attitude around the team. It’s a family, it’s an energy, It’s a bond that everybody cares so much about each other, and that’s so important to me.”
You’ve been training all over the world this summer; why is that and what has that been like?
“So when I think about traveling the world, I’m always going to want to learn. I’m always going to want to learn from different people.”
“I was in Iceland recently training with one of the best grapplers in MMA in Gunnar Nelson. The week before, I was in Barcelona, training with Demian Maia, arguably the greatest grappler that’s ever set foot in an Octagon. I’m now training with him full-time in Sao Paulo. I’m training alongside Chute Boxe. This to me is exciting, it’s fun, I get to grow, I get to see new bodies, new styles, new techniques, and then I’ll go to learn somewhere else again, and you will see the evolution in the Octagon.”
What was it like meeting and sparring with Conor McGregor?
“I love that man so much before I met him as a fan, I’m so emotionally invested in everything that he does. His career, his social media is my favorite. I love him even more after meeting him and being able to spend time with him because he is everything I thought he was and more. It was absolutely sensational. It was exceptional to be able to pick his mind, one of the greatest minds in the sport, and it was something I’ll never, ever forget.”
Who do you think will win the UFC 296 welterweight title fight between Colby Covington and Leon Edwards?
“I think Leon is too good everywhere. I think the only way Colby potentially has a chance is if he really gets under Leon’s skin at the press conference, at the weigh-ins, and he really gets under his skin because that mental warfare matters.”
“But I think when it comes to technique, when it comes to styles, when it comes to the ability, I think Leon has it all. and I think he’ll be able to find a way to win, to get a finish, whatever it is. but I think Leon is absolutely the better athlete.”
Do you have a message for the fans ahead of UFC 296?
“I think one thing I want to say to the fans is that you are going to see a very different Ian Machado Garry in the Octagon on December 16th because I’m going in there with a lot more emotions, and when you give me emotions, I fight so much better with these emotions. So watch me harness them and make easy work of Vicente.”
(This interview has been edited for length and clarity.)