Ian Machado Garry has faced criticism for the excessive hugging during his UFC 330 title fight in August, when he lost a decision to Islam Makhachev, but his head coach Diego Lima believes the hate is too much.
Makhachev said immediately after the fight he didn’t understand why Garry hugged him multiple times in the cage, adding it’s “not something we have to hug each other every round.” UFC CEO Dana White also piled on the criticism, saying the Irishman lacked “killer instinct” in the final round, coming out and hugging his opponent instead of rushing for a finish.
Lima was in Garry’s corner in Philadelphia and told MMA Fighting he only paid attention to the hugs when it later became a topic of discussion.
“I swear I didn’t notice it,” Lima said. “And I don’t think the hugs influenced anything at all. Him greeting his opponent, honestly… Charles [Oliveira] does that too. Charles hugs everyone when the round ends, when the round starts. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with it. That didn’t change the outcome of the fight. Thank God, Ian is a family man, a respectful guy, extremely polite. If he wants to greet people more, let him greet people more. There’s no problem with that.”
That was the second time Makhachev has faced a fighter coached by Lima, the first being a lightweight title bout against Charles Oliveira, and Lima has nothing but great things to say about the welterweight champion.
“As much as he’s our opponent, he’s also an extremely respectful guy,” Lima said. “I like him as a human being. I also admire his work as a fighter. But even though we’re opponents, he’s a guy who always greets us whenever he sees us and gives us a hug.”
Lima admits maybe Garry could have won the fight if he had been more aggressive inside the octagon, and that’s a lesson learned for the future. He remains proud of what Garry was able to do against one of the most dominant champions in UFC history.
“Ian fought very well, and you saw both of their faces,” Lima said. “I think if we had been just a little more aggressive, we could have knocked him out. But at the same time, we knew we were facing the No. 1 guy. There’s nothing you can say about Makhachev, he’s an extremely tough guy.”
“He really is a very tough, very good fighter, and the results speak for themselves,” he continued. “And Ian Garry came very close to winning this fight. That’s why I really believe that in a rematch, Ian Garry can win. I’m not going to say that [Makhachev] isn’t all that, because he is. He’s very, very tough. But I think everyone saw it, and Makhachev himself saw it, how tough Ian is. I think if we had been a little more aggressive, we could have knocked him out. Because Ian, in my opinion, is one of the smartest fighters in the UFC. One of the highest fight IQs in the UFC. He adapts to everyone’s game. He fought [Carlos] Prates, who is a nasty striker. He fought Makhachev, who is a nasty grappler, and he adapted to both styles. I really believe we’re going to have that belt next year.”
