Ian Machado Garry vows to leave Colby Covington “face down on the canvas” if they fight

By Cole Shelton - February 19, 2024

Ian Machado Garry is hoping to fight Colby Covington next and he has full confidence he will finish the former interim welterweight champion.

Ian Machado Garry and Colby Covington

After Garry’s decision win over Geoff Neal on Saturday at UFC 298, he called out Covington for his next fight. It’s a scrap that the Irishman has wanted for quite some time and now he believes it will come to fruition.

Should Ian Machado Garry get his wish, the Irishman believes he will finish Colby Covington and leave him face down on the canvas.

“He’s not a 10th of the athlete I am. He doesn’t have the technique that I have, he doesn’t have the mindset that I have. I mean, the guy is a joke and a clown, he was going to get cut by the UFC until he put on this fake persona that everybody knows about and is aware about. I know for a fact I am the biggest he’s going to get, he’s not going to fight an Usman, he’s not going to fight a Shavkat, he’s not going to fight Belal because they are all terrible matchups for him. I’m a striker at heart, striker vs. wrestler makes sense. I’ve also not been tested against an elite American wrestler in the division,” Ian Machado Garry said on The MMA Hour.

“So, give me the guy who’s arguably the best at it. Let me show the world how much better I am than him, let me do it over five rounds, let me do it in a massive main event in Ireland, or a co-main event on the Conor McGregor-Michael Chandler card whenever that is,” Garry said. “But, I promise you know, I will put Colby Covington face down on the canvas. Whether I knock him out or whether I choke him unconscious.”

“I don’t care how it happens, I know for a fact it will happen because he’s never ever going to be as good as me. I just know there is not a bigger matchup for him to take, there is no bigger paycheque for him to get at the moment because I am the biggest name he can compete against. He’s also not in a position where he can turn down fights,” Garry concluded about Covington.

On paper, a fight between Ian Machado Garry and Colby Covington does makes sense, but whether or not it will come to fruition remains to be seen.