Ian Machado Garry throws cold water on Shavkat Rakhmonov's title hopes

Ian Machado Garry faced Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 310 last December in a five-round welterweight title eliminator and suffered a unanimous decision loss, which was also the first setback of his career. Despite Rakhmonov stealing Garry's undefeated record, 'The Future' believes 'Nomad' does not deserve a title shot.

The undefeated Kazakh phenom was recently forced to turn down a title opportunity at UFC 315 due to injury, after which Jack Della Maddalena stepped in and dethroned Belal Muhammad. Now, Rakhmonov hopes to fight for the title once he is injury-free and ready.

Speaking on The Ariel Helwani Show, Garry made the case that, despite beating him, Rakhmonov should not get a title shot upon his return.

"When you look at the welterweight division right now and the way the welterweight division has evolved, I'd argue it's the most exciting it's ever been right now. When you look at sheer depth of talent and youth and the passing of the torch from the old to the young in the division, it's actually the most exciting the division's ever been... You've got Shavkat, you've got Jack, you've got me, you've got [Carlos] Prates, you've got [Michael] Morales."

Garry later mentioned Joaquin Buckley and Sean Brady as other exciting names in the division before adding:

"All of us are right there on that cusp. I don't believe Shavkat should just come back and get that, especially if all of us fight again, but that's not how it works sometimes, unfortunately... Politics get involved and the UFC as a business do whatever they decide and that's it."

Check out Ian Machado Garry's comments below:

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Ian Machado Garry takes aim at Jack Della Maddalena

Ian Machado Garry used his appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show as an opportunity to fire shots at Jack Della Maddalena and his coach. When asked about comments made by Ben Vickers, who coaches the welterweight champion, 'The Future' claimed:

"In his last four fights, Jack has had one finish. So, he's telling me I need to get into the gym and I need to start finding some power, right? He got beat up pretty bad. I've seen his face... He looked pretty bad, right? And Belal [Muhammad] ain't nowhere near the striker that I am... I'll bend his nose backwards the way it should be."

Check out Ian Machado Garry's comments below:

Garry disregarded Vickers' claim that he is flying around the world attempting to achieve stardom, noting that he is simply attempting to fight. He noted that he believes Della Maddalena's suggestion that Garry's son may not be his is a sign of mental weakness, which he plans to exploit when the two fight.