Oliveira Backs Garry To Beat Makhachev At UFC 330

Charles Oliveira believes teammate Ian Machado Garry has what it takes to dethrone Islam Makhachev at UFC 330.

Garry challenges the welterweight champion August 15 in Philadelphia after stopping former titleholder Belal Muhammad last November, per MMA Fighting. Makhachev submitted Oliveira to begin his lightweight reign in 2022 before moving up a division, and the Brazilian veteran told MMA Fighting his Chute Boxe training partner has been locked in on this matchup since earning the shot nine months ago.

How Garry's Camp Experience With Oliveira Could Prove Key

"Ian truly has a very good chance of beating Makhachev," Oliveira said. "I'm not saying that because he's my friend or because he's part of our team, but because of what we've seen and how he's been training." The former lightweight champion praised Garry's discipline in sticking to game plans, calling it the Irishman's defining edge inside the cage.

Makhachev enters on a 16-fight UFC winning streak and can break Anderson Silva's all-time record with a victory. He beat legends Alexander Volkanovski, Dustin Poirier, and Oliveira at 155 pounds before claiming welterweight gold against Jack Della Maddalena a week before Garry's title eliminator. Oliveira said his own experience facing Makhachev has informed Garry's camp, noting that sharing the cage with someone leaves you with insights that translate when coaching against the same opponent.

"He's really happy to have this opportunity to fight for the title," Oliveira added, as reported by both MMA Fighting and BJ Penn.com. "Ian didn't just start this training camp now, he's been in camp and focused on this fight for a long time already." Oliveira emphasized that Garry never drifts from strategy once the blueprint is set, a trait he believes will serve the challenger well against one of the sport's most suffocating grapplers.

Original reporting:

• mmafighting.com — Charles Oliveira: Ian Machado Garry has ‘very good chance’ of beating Islam Makhachev at UFC 330 | MMA Fighting
• bjpenn.com — Charles Oliveira believes Ian Machado Garry can defeat Islam Makhachev | BJPenn.com