It wasn’t pretty, but Ian Machado Garry extended his undefeated streak.
In an interesting stylistic matchup, Garry defeated Michael “Venom” Page by unanimous decision in a welterweight bout that opened the UFC 303 main card. It was Garry’s wrestling and grappling that were the difference, as the unorthodox Page was, by far, the more effective striker.
The question regarding Garry was how he would respond to pressure. Geoff Neal tested him in his last bout, but Neal is not quite at Page’s caliber. Garry (15-0) won the fight by forcing Page (22-3) into positions where he did not want to be, and ones he could not escape.
The first round was complete domination for Garry, who forced Page to the ground and then seized control of his back. He won the round, doing everything necessary with the exception of getting a finish.
Page opened the second round by stunning Garry with a right hand. Utilizing his elite speed, Page landed better shots and, clearly, controlled the fight whenever the two were standing. Garry had Page on the ground, but he was unable to put him in any sort of danger. Covering space and distance is Page’s specialty, but the third was decided by which the judges deemed more effective: Page’s striking or Garry taking Page’s back, and the judges preferred the control time from Garry.
Garry is not quite at the welterweight title level, but this victory helps forward his trajectory in that direction.