Ian Machado Garry stored receipts.
For anybody questioning the legitimacy of a combat proposed between him and Colby Covington at UFC 303, the top-10 ranked welterweight has emails exhibiting the supply and his quick acceptance. Sadly, Garry stated the identical couldn’t be stated for Covington, and UFC finally misplaced curiosity and booked him in opposition to Michael “Venom” Web page as a substitute.
“I’ll ship you the e-mail. I used to be provided the combat,” Garry stated on The MMA Hour. “I used to be provided the combat, I used to be provided it June 29, UFC 303, Ian Machado Garry vs. Colby Covington. I responded again to that and stated sure. I had a number of calls with the UFC, a number of again and forths with the UFC about why it hasn’t been accepted, why it hasn’t been pushed, why it’s not occurring.
“I used to be on the telephone a lot with them as a result of I knew that combat was the one I needed. I’ll push [for] the combat I do know I would like. On the finish of the day, I can’t make a person step into the octagon with me if he’s petrified of me.”
Garry stated there was no hesitation on his half to take the combat, nevertheless he heard a mess of the reason why Covington wasn’t returning the favor.
“Truthfully, there was so many various causes that simply didn’t align in my thoughts,” Garry stated. “They stated at first he can’t get [medically cleared], after which it was, ‘Oh, he’s effective, he needs the combat.’ He’s on speaking about, ‘I’ll combat, I’ll combat, I’ll combat,’ however then he’s not accepting.
“The reality is, I feel he’s simply avoiding me. I don’t suppose there’s anyone [thing]. He’s simply avoiding the combat as a result of he is aware of, ‘Ian Garry’s too harmful for me to step in that octagon with, I’ll attempt to wait and discover another person.’”
Garry proposed the Covington combat for quite a lot of causes, not the least of which had been the insults the three-time title challenger hurled at him, his spouse, and his household throughout interviews main into Covington’s loss to Leon Edwards this previous December.
Covington’s vitriol aimed in the direction of Garry hasn’t slowed down since, and he even known as the Irishman a “liar,” claiming that he by no means acquired a suggestion for the matchup.
Nonetheless, Garry believes deep down that Covington is aware of why the combat by no means got here collectively.
“I don’t know, sitting right here proper now, if I ever consider that he’ll settle for a combat with me,” Garry stated. “I feel Colby Covington seems at me and I feel he sees the top of his profession. A younger, proficient prospect, tremendous sharp, tremendous quick, tremendous sensible, and totally different to anybody else he’s ever fought. That’s scary once you’re on the latter finish of your profession and also you’re simply making an attempt to remain related and beat individuals who aren’t going to be world champions and aren’t going to be the perfect.
“I feel he’s going to search for different simpler opponents and I don’t see a world the place Colby ever fights me. But when he needs to, then by all means again it up, since you’ve talked an excessive amount of shit to not get in that octagon with me.”
In fact, Garry is aware of it might be awfully exhausting to cross up on a combat in opposition to Covington if that got here again round once more.
“I’ll by no means say I’m finished with it,” Garry stated. “As a result of that man’s talked an excessive amount of shit to not step in that octagon and go on the market and destroy him, as a result of he deserves to have the top slapped off him.”
When it got here time to shift his focus from Covington to Web page at UFC 303, Garry confessed it wasn’t simple, however that’s simply a part of the job.
Ideally he’d be knocking out Covington on Saturday night time, however he’ll try and do the identical to Web page, even when there’s actually no unhealthy blood between them.
“I used to be so excited, so buzzing to get that Colby combat,” Garry stated. “To get Colby, to have the flexibility to punch his mouth in, to close him up, to essentially simply canine stroll him, simply go on the market and destroy him in each approach, form and type. However he ran. He stated no and it was exhausting to re-shift that power, re-shift that alignment to go, ‘Proper, who’s subsequent?’ Then I had a rake of opponents say no, no, no, no, no. Then finally we fell and MVP rotated after he stated no initially and are available again and stated sure.
“Sure, it was exhausting, however now it’s not. Now it’s OK. I’m among the best fighters on the planet, I’m going to go on the market and show it, and MVP’s my instance.”
