Ian Machado Garry goes scorched earth on 'coward' Colby Covington, Kamaru Usman over UFC 310 saga

When injury forced UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad out of his first title defense at UFC 310, Ian Machado Garry stepped in to save the day.

As much as 18-0 contender Shavkat Rakhmonov wanted and argued for the creation of an interim title, both he and Garry settled for the next best thing — a highly anticipated matchup of unbeaten contenders and former training partners. The 170-pound standouts get co-main event duties this Saturday in Las Vegas.

Former UFC champion Kamaru Usman initially appeared to be the likeliest replacement for Muhammad in the early wake of change. Garry, on the other hand, was already booked for UFC Tampa's headliner against Joaquin Buckley on Dec. 14 after several failed attempts to secure higher-ranked opposition. Buckley wasn't ever of interest to Garry, the Irishman admitted Monday on Uncrowned's "The Ariel Helwani Show," but it was more about fighting someone when other names weren't willing.

"Initially, the goal was to line up a fight with Colby Covington [for UFC Tampa]," Garry said. "Again, it's no secret that he's been running. And then [UFC matchmakers] went down the line, and they looked at Kamaru Usman.

"Kamaru Usman's words were literally the words I heard from the UFC, 'Kamaru Usman wants nothing to do with you.' As in, he's just running as well. Again, obviously [that would've been] a Shavkat-Belal [No. 1 contender] match. The other guys are injured, in regards to Leon (Edwards) and [Jack Della Maddalena] not [being available] to fight at the end of the year. It was in that situation then again of, 'Right, there's no one above me. I'm frustrated. I'm irritated. I want to fight guys that are going to get me a step closer to that world title shot. Not defending my number, I want to progress up the rankings.'

"It's irritating because there's meant to be six of the baddest men on the planet in front of me, but they're not really. They're very sensitive, and they're very selective of who they fight."

Speculation swirled before UFC 310's original main event was booked about whether Muhammad vs. Rakhmonov would be the next welterweight title bout. In the eyes of the champion Muhammad, Usman still remained an option thanks to his previous accolades, despite Usman having lost his past three fights.

Usman, 37, teased the possibility of stepping in whenever mentioned on podcasts or during broadcast work for the UFC, however Garry dismisses those suggestions as little more than empty talk.

"Usman was never in the talks. Usman is running," Garry said. "He was mentioned about it, but that man was never taking a fight with me or Shavkat. Let's be real about that. That's a fact."

Garry said he offered to serve as the backup fighter for Muhammad vs. Rakhmonov after UFC 310's original main event was finally set, but that offer was declined by promotion officials.

In the end, everything arguably worked out better than Garry tried to plan. Usman or Covington would've been undeniably notable fights and potential wins on his record, but UFC 310's short-notice showdown against Rakhmonov is practically an interim title fight without the title.

Still, his frustrations over the division's talk without action have reached a boiling point.

"Usman has a big chest and little balls," Garry said. "He's got a big chest, he looks good, he plays the part, but where it matters between the legs, he's a little man. That's my outlook on it. He's worried again. Him and Colby, they're older, they've been through the division.

"Now they're getting to the end of their careers, they want to choose the better stylistic matchups. I guarantee this. Usman is going to try to push for a fight with Jack Della Maddalena because he's seen how easily Gilbert Burns was able to take him down. So, for me, if I was in Usman's shoes, why would I want to fight the guy who's long, rangy, difficult to deal with [like me], when I could fight a guy who I've watched two people back to back be able to take him down quite easily? I guarantee Usman's going to try to push for the 'JDM' fight because he's weak-minded."

Garry hasn't been shy to speak his mind over his UFC career. It's launched him into volatile social media beefs with fighters both in and out of welterweight, but none more so than with Covington.

The two still have yet to meet despite Garry's best efforts. Verbal jabs between them cut deeply personal over the past year, and ironically, Covington is now set to fill Garry's UFC Tampa slot opposite Buckley.

If Garry needed any more proof of Covington not wanting to fight him, that was it.

"I've been screaming and shouting about fighting that man from the rafters," Garry said. "This man's made videos about me, my wife, my kids talked about all this. All this s***. And here's this man avoiding me like the plague. Then the second I book [a fight] against the scariest man in the division, he's like, 'Oh, I'll fight in Florida.'

"It just shows that he's a coward, that he wants nothing to do with me, and the truth is, I know I've already beaten him. I know I've already mentally beaten him. He's weak. He's an absolute coward, and I believe he's going to go out there and get steamrolled by Joaquin Buckley. I think Buckley starches him."

Ever confident, Garry now has a bold idea to close out 2024.

"Here's my ideal scenario," he explained. "I go out there Dec. 7, and I take out Shavkat early. I come out of there unscathed, uninjured. I get on the mic, and I sit down, I say, 'Hey, I could wait until next year when Belal Muhammed's back, or Dana (White), Hunter (Campbell), UFC, I could walk my ass all the way down to Florida, and I could beat the bollocks out of Colby Covington for 25 minutes, and I can prove how good I am next week because that man talks a lot, but he's not willing to back it up.'

"That would be my ideal. I would love to beat Shavkat and [then] the following week's fight, as the main event in Tampa, bury Colby Covington and leave him dead and done in that Octagon, never to be seen again.

"I want that fight just because of how much trash he talked," Garry added. "But I'm well aware that when I beat Shavkat Saturday night, it's me being booked against Belal Muhammad for the world title later on in 2025. I'm about to win that world title and Colby Covington's far, far, far in the rearview mirror."

Garry dispatching the flawless Rakhmonov will obviously be much easier said than done, as none of Rakhmonov's 18 prior opponents have come close. The feared welterweight owns a rare 100% finish rate.

The history between Saturday's two co-headliners is brief but exists; Garry and Rakhmonov trained and sparred together in the past at Floriday's Kill Cliff FC gym. From those training sessions to this week's circumstances to Garry's career progression, he knows deep down his predictions will keep coming true.

"I could sit here and say, 'Oh, I wish I wanted more time to prepare,' but the truth is I work best with speed," Garry said. "When you give me just the smallest amount of time to work for an opponent, I'm going to go out there and do what's natural and do what's free to me. Just go out there and have fun and be me.

"Shavkat's phenomenal. I respect him, I respect everything that he brings to this matchup. But I know I'm well capable of going out there and putting him in the dirt. I know I'm well capable of going out there, finishing him, beating him up and doing it beautifully.

"So for me, I get to go out here on Dec. 7 at UFC 310, make a statement to myself and the rest of the MMA community that I am one of the greatest fighters this sport has ever seen, and I'm going to prove it by doing it against a guy that many think is the boogeyman."