Shavkat Rakhmonov and Ian Machado Garry's fight on Saturday has divided combat sports fans as both men put their undefeated records on the line.
The pair are former teammates at Kill Cliff MMA in Florida, with Garry even admitting he was once submitted by Rakhmonov during a sparring session. However, the Irishman is undefeated in his own right and is still very confident of victory.
One man who has trained with both and been up close and personal is PFL star Paul Hughes. The Bellator title contender cornered Garry the night he won his Cage Warriors title, but is now on the mats with Rakhmonov day in and day out in the Florida gym.
Ian Machado Garry admits he was submitted during a sparring session with Shavkat Rakhmonov
The biggest story leading up to the UFC 310 co-main event comes from old sparring when Ian Machado Garry and Shavkat Rakhmonov trained together at Kill Cliff. The pair are the same weight and shared training sessions, with the Kazakh fighter claiming he had the best workouts.
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
In an interview on The Ariel Helwani Show, Rakhmonov said: “Although his wife at the time asked me if she could film the footage of us sparring, I accepted. But they didn't ask me if they could release it or not. I wonder why they didn't release the other part of the sparring.
When asked what happened, the fighter replied: “Ian Garry taps. It was a submission, a choke. The most important thing for me is the victory. Sparring is sparring, fighting is different.
“Ian Garry is a very strong opponent, a good tactician and with a good game plan. So for me it doesn't matter, submission or abandonment. For me, winning is the most important thing.”
Paul Hughes backs Ian Machado Garry to defeat Shavkat Rakhmonov
One man who knows both Garry and Rakhmonov very well is Paul Hughes. The Derry native is back in Florida to prepare for his fight with Usman Nurmagomedov in Dubai next month, and is spending his time training at the same facility as the Kazakh titan.
But he still supports his friend Garry, who he has been close to since their days on the Irish regional circuit. “I'm absolutely confident Ian will beat him,” Hughes told Bloody Elbow in an exclusive chat ahead of the fight.
“That's maybe something I shouldn't say, because I've been sharing the mats with Shavkat here in Kill Cliff for the past few weeks. But at the end of the day it's just my opinion and everyone has an opinion. I really think Ian will go out there and win for sure. I think he wins.”
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