Machado Garry to fight Makhachev for welterweight title
Irish fighter Machado Garry has secured a UFC welterweight title shot against Islam Makhachev after beating out other contenders.
Machado Garry has won the opportunity to challenge for the UFC welterweight championship, edging out Carlos Prates and Michael Morales for the title shot. Brazil's Prates has knocked out his last three opponents, though he lost to Machado Garry in April last year. Ecuador's Morales remains undefeated with 19 career wins. Garry's path to the title was cleared after he lost a number-one contender bout to Shavkat Rakhmonov in 2024. Rakhmonov has not fought since due to injury and was removed from the UFC welterweight rankings in February, boosting Garry's position. The last Irish fighter to compete for a belt in a major MMA promotion was Karl Moore, who lost a Bellator light-heavyweight title fight to Corey Anderson in 2024. In the co-main event in Philadelphia, American-Brazilian Mackenzie Dern will make her first strawweight title defence against Canada's Gillian Robertson. Dern, 33, won the belt in October by defeating Virna Jandiroba, marking her third straight victory. Robertson, 31, enters the bout on a five-fight win streak.
