Makhachev Defends 170-Pound Title Against Machado Garry at UFC 330

Q: With a historic win streak on the line, is Ian Garry the true test for pound-for-pound king Islam Makhachev?

Yes — Garry is a legitimate test for Islam Makhachev, even if he is not the most commercially obvious one. The stakes alone make it real. Makhachev enters UFC 330 on a 16-fight UFC winning streak, tied with Anderson Silva for the longest in company history, and a win would give him the record outright. He is also making his first welterweight title defense after moving up and taking the belt from Jack Della Maddalena, so this is not a routine defense in a division he has long ruled. Garry’s résumé supports the matchup. He is 17-1, 10-1 in the UFC, and his only loss came to Shavkat Rakhmonov, notably the first time Rakhmonov failed to finish an opponent. Since then, Garry has rebuilt momentum with wins over Carlos Prates and former champion Belal Muhammad, which is the kind of recent form that justifies a title shot. What makes Garry a meaningful challenge is style and context more than star power. He is a natural welterweight, a confident striker, and a younger contender entering his prime. That presents a different problem than the smaller lightweights Makhachev dominated or the one-off title win at 170. That said, skepticism is fair. Makhachev is the unanimous pound-for-pound No. 1, a two-division champion, and has beaten a deeper list of elite names than Garry has. So Garry may not be the definitive threat to Makhachev’s legacy — but he is a credible, high-level test at exactly the right moment.

Q: As Mackenzie Dern defends her belt, is former champion Zhang Weili just waiting to reclaim the strawweight throne?

No. Zhang Weili is the obvious looming threat at strawweight, but she is not simply waiting in line to reclaim the belt. The clearest fact is that Zhang is currently on a break from fighting. Dana White said the UFC tried to book Dern vs. Zhang for the June 14 White House card, but the fight could not be made because Zhang was “taking time off.” That makes her immediate plans uncertain, even though she remains the division’s No. 1-ranked contender. Still, the path back to the title is very real. Zhang vacated the strawweight belt to challenge Valentina Shevchenko at flyweight and lost, and many around the division expect her to return to 115 pounds. Dern’s own camp still treats Zhang as the benchmark in the weight class, and contenders such as Virna Jandiroba and Tatiana Suarez have also acknowledged that Zhang would merit major consideration for a title shot if she comes back. That said, Dern’s defense against Gillian Robertson matters because the division is moving without Zhang. Robertson is on a five-fight winning streak, and Suarez is also pressing her case after winning at UFC 327. If Zhang stays inactive for too long, the title picture could become harder to freeze around her. So the most accurate read is this: Zhang Weili is not actively waiting cageside for the belt, but she remains the most credible former champion to reclaim it if and when she returns to strawweight.

3 articles · Updated · ESPN · Jun 17

UFC 330 will headline Islam Makhachev’s first welterweight title defense against Ian Machado Garry on Aug. 15 in Philadelphia, UFC announced Wednesday.
Makhachev enters at 28-1, unbeaten since 2015, after vacating his lightweight belt and winning the 170-pound title over Jack Della Maddalena by five-round decision.
Machado Garry, 17-1 and 10-1 in the UFC, has rebounded from his only promotion loss to Shavkat Rakhmonov with consecutive wins over Carlos Prates and former champion Belal Muhammad.
The card also adds a second title fight, with strawweight champion Mackenzie Dern making her first defense against Gillian Robertson, who brings a five-fight winning streak.
Makhachev’s standing as the sport’s top pound-for-pound fighter has strengthened after former lightweight champion Ilia Topuria suffered his first professional loss last weekend.