UFC welterweight contender Joaquin Buckley is expecting Ian Garry to maintain his '0' when he does battle with fellow undefeated contender Shavkat Rakhmonov.
Garry has been drafted in on late notice to co-headline this weekend's UFC 310 pay-per-view in Las Vegas, where the T-Mobile Arena will play host to a crucial clash at 170 pounds between two of the top unbeaten talents at 170 pounds.
While Rakhmonov was originally set to challenge for Belal Muhammad's gold in the main event, an infection forced the champion's withdrawal. With that, the Kazakh standout will have to defend his top contender spot opposite a former training partner.
Betting odds currently have "Nomad" a signifcant favorite to do so, with his line sitting at -375 on DraftKings. The man who had his matchup with Garry fall through as a result of the recent shuffle, however, sees the underdog having his hand raised.
During an interview with MiddleEasy, Buckley provided his thoughts on Garry's new bout with Rakhmonov, which spoiled "New Mansa's" plan to become the first to defeat the Irishman a week later in the UFC Tampa headliner.
In recent bouts, "The Future" has been criticized for grinding out decision wins with a technical and safe approach. And Buckley expects the Dubliner to employ that exact strategy en route to an upset at UFC 310.
A lot of people are not going to believe me, but I think Ian Garry is going to win – by the skin of his teeth, just like the rest of his wins that he had," Buckley said. "Whether that’s with 'MVP' or with Geoff Neal. He does a good job of staying safe and surviving, and if you don’t have the feet to kind of hunt down guys like that, where they’re constantly moving and constantly evading, and you set up traps.
Obviously, you’re not going to be able to land those power shots. … If you get in the fire with Shavkat Rakhmonov, you’re going to get burned," Buckley continued. "But I don’t see Ian Garry running into that burning house. He’s going to try to flee and evade the whole time, and I can see Ian Garry getting his hand raised by decision.
Garry will look to prove Buckley's prediction correct come fight night versus Rakhmonov in "Sin City" this weekend — thought perhaps in a more emphatic and impressive faction than the American is envisioning.
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"New Mansa," meanwhile, has a new target in his sights for Dec. 14 in Tampa.
The #9-ranked contender will still have the opportunity to climb the ranks, as he looks to add to the woes of Colby Covington following his third failed bid for the undisputed crown last December.