Following a decisive victory at UFC Vegas 106, Michael Morales has a specific opponent in mind.
There`s a significant new presence in the welterweight title picture, and it`s Michael Morales. In his inaugural UFC main event appearance, Morales impressively overcame former title challenger Gilbert Burns with a first-round stoppage on Saturday, maintaining his perfect record in his nascent mixed martial arts career.
Morales is among several promising young fighters contributing to the shift currently happening within the UFC`s welterweight division. Alongside names like Carlos Prates and Shavkat Rakhmonov, Morales is regarded as a potential future contender for the divisional championship.
After securing the most important win of his career, Morales is keen to challenge one of the top contenders in the division, who he claims was involved in an incident with some of his teammates at the UFC Performance Institute.
Morales Calls Out Ian Machado Garry
During a recent interview on The Ariel Helwani Show after UFC Vegas 106, when asked about his next desired opponent, Morales promptly called out Ian Machado Garry.
“Ian Garry, I want to beat him up, I don’t like him,” Morales stated.
“I believe he’s been very disrespectful with fighters that I admire, like Belal [Muhammad] or [Neil] Magny. They don’t deserve to be disrespected. I think he talks a lot.”
“One time he had some problems in the PI with some people I know, and when I found out, I wanted to see what he was doing, but he wasn’t there…so I want to shut him up.”
Garry was quick to respond to Morales`s comments. As a prominent teammate of Burns, Garry paid close attention to the fight at UFC Vegas 106.
Garry denied any confrontation with Morales`s teammates at the UFC PI and expressed bewilderment regarding Morales`s accusations. Nonetheless, Morales is determined to face Garry to stand up for his colleagues.
Garry`s Previous Conflict with Jack Della Maddalena
Garry also had a previous run-in with UFC welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena leading up to UFC 315. At the UFC 315 media day, Garry`s son approached Maddalena to offer him candy while he was cutting weight, which Maddalena declined.
However, Maddalena took things further after his title defense against Belal Muhammad. In a peculiar accusation widely shared on social media, Maddalena questioned the paternity of Garry`s son.
Garry wasted no time in addressing Maddalena`s personal attacks, labeling the champion `immature` in a recent conversation with Ariel Helwani. Garry`s most recent fight was a victory over Prates at UFC Kansas City, a win that potentially puts him in contention for a title shot with his next outing.
Maddalena is reportedly set to face UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev in a superfight later this year. Makhachev is expected to vacate the lightweight belt at UFC 317, which will subsequently be contested between Charles Oliveira and Ilia Topuria.
Percy Harlow