Garry the frontrunner

Ian Machado Garry has emerged as the reported frontrunner to face Islam Makhachev for the Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight title. (bloodyelbow.com) Bloody Elbow reported that Garry moved to the front of the line after beating former champion Belal Muhammad in Doha, Qatar, on November 22, 2025. The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s official scorecards show Garry won a unanimous decision by 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28. (bloodyelbow.com) (ufc.com) The timing may be moving, too. Dana White has said Makhachev would return in August, but Bloody Elbow reported that Makhachev posted “📞 July?” on X on April 22, pointing to an earlier defense. (bloodyelbow.com 1) (bloodyelbow.com 2) That matters because Makhachev is no longer defending the lightweight belt. UFC lists him as its welterweight champion after he moved up and beat Jack Della Maddalena for the 170-pound title at UFC 322 in November 2025. (ufc.com) (espn.com) A Garry title shot would also put a younger contender at the front of a division that has been sorting out its pecking order since Makhachev’s move up. Garry is 17-1, according to UFC Stats, and he added the Muhammad win after beating Carlos Prates in another 2026 welterweight headliner. (ufcstats.com) (ufc.com) Makhachev enters any defense with one of the strongest résumés in the promotion. UFC’s record book lists him on a 16-fight win streak, tied for the longest in company history with Anderson Silva as of the April 19, 2026 update. (ufc.com) The calendar is one reason August has been the focus. UFC announced on April 14 that UFC 330 will be held in Philadelphia on August 15, giving the promotion a clear summer pay-per-view date for a Makhachev return even though no main event has been formally named. (ufc.com) (bloodyelbow.com) For now, the clearest picture is this: Garry has the recent win the promotion can sell, Makhachev is signaling he wants back sooner, and the next public step is the UFC making the matchup official. (bloodyelbow.com) (ufc.com)