Ian Machado Garry said “patience was the key” to victory over Michael ‘Venom’ Page after his unanimous points victory at UFC 303 in Las Vegas.
Dubliner Garry, who extended his unbeaten record to 15-0, showcased his versatility in taking a 29-28 win on all three cards – as he won the first and third rounds with grappling.
Usually relying on his quick and powerful striking, against a point fighter with quicker hands and feet, Garry was close to turning out the lights of his opponent in the first round as he locked in a choke hold after taking Page down to the mat.
The second round, which saw mostly stand-up action, went the way of the Londoner who landed a number of right hands with Garry unable to land many blows.
With all to play for in the final five minutes, Garry locked a body triangle early in the round and then got position on Page’s back with a head lock for the second half of it.
Complimentary about his defeated rival, Garry said on TNT Sports: “He did a great, great game plan today. Tonight was an awesome fight.”
The Dubliner insisted that patience was the decisive factor.
He explained: “Nothing surprised me. I knew how good he was, how talented he was. For me, it was patience. Patience was the key today. Today was patience.”
Continuing, Garry set his sights on higher ambitions: “The future is inevitable and I’m coming for this belt. I’m coming for that world title. I don’t care who’s next. I’m going to be a world champion.”
In the final fight of the evening’s action, Alex Pereira’s legend continued to grow with a devastating second-round technical knockout victory over Jiri Prochazka.
The rematch from the fight in November, which saw the same result, was a much more one-sided affair with Pereira tagging Prochazka repeatedly in the first round, before landing a left hook on the buzzer which would have ended the bout if it had come just a few seconds earlier.