Coach Diego Lima Defends Ian Machado Garry Over UFC 330 Hugging Criticism

The hugs became the story almost as fast as the scorecards. In the UFC 330 main event at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, Islam Makhachev beat Ian Machado Garry by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 48-47), and along the way Garry hugged his opponent multiple times in the cage. Makhachev said afterward he didn’t understand it, remarking it’s not something we have to hug each other every round. UFC CEO Dana White piled on, saying the Irishman lacked killer instinct in the final round when he came out hugging instead of hunting a finish.

Lima, who cornered Garry in Philadelphia, isn’t having it. He told MMA Fighting he only registered the hugs when they turned into a talking point.

Lima swore he didn’t notice it and said he didn’t think the hugs influenced anything at all, adding that they didn’t change the outcome of the fight.

Diego Lima compares Garry’s hugs to Charles Oliveira’s habit

Lima’s defense leaned on precedent from his own gym. Charles Oliveira, whom Lima also coaches, hugs everyone when rounds start and end, the coach noted, and nobody calls it a character flaw. Ian is a family man, a respectful guy, extremely polite, Lima said — if he wants to greet people, let him.

There’s history here, too. This was the second time Makhachev has faced a fighter coached by Lima, the first being a lightweight title bout against Oliveira. Lima, for his part, speaks warmly of the champion even now.

I like him as a human being. I also admire his work as a fighter. But even though we’re opponents, he’s a guy who always greets us whenever he sees us and gives us a hug.

Diego Lima, on Islam Makhachev, via MMA Fighting

Javier Mendez saw a mental game, not a wasted moment

White wasn’t the only one in the promotion’s orbit with concerns, but the criticism drew a rebuttal from the winning side of the sport. Javier Mendez, the American Kickboxing Academy coach, told Submission Radio that White’s view misses the psychology of a counter fighter facing a champion who refuses to overextend. Islam isn’t attacking because Garry is waiting to counter, Mendez explained — hence the standoff look of the fight.

Mendez went further on the friendliness itself, reading it as deliberate gamesmanship. What a genius move he did, he said of Garry’s fight-week demeanor, and if that was the plan, I applaud him for that — because it works.

The 17th straight win that made history in Philadelphia

The result itself was solid, if unspectacular. Round 4 was a toss-up, and with the bout potentially tied entering the fifth, Makhachev shot, took the back, and rode out the decision.

The numbers tell the scale of it. Makhachev improved to 29-1, claimed his record 17th consecutive UFC win — breaking the tie he’d shared with Anderson Silva at 16 — and notched his second successful welterweight title defense. Garry fell to 17-2, with both losses coming to Makhachev and Shavkat Rakhmonov, the latter a December 2024 unanimous decision.

Garry’s answer: “If I fight him right now, I beat him”

The fighter himself isn’t in the reflection business. Speaking to DAZN weeks after the loss, Garry identified what he’d change — a bit more volume, more kicks — and then went a step further. The quote, also circulated by BJPENN.com on September 5, 2026:

I feel like if I fight [Islam] right now, I’d beat him. [I’ll be back] as soon as physically possible. Anyone, anywhere, anytime.

Ian Machado Garry, via DAZN

Lima’s confidence matches his fighter’s.

Michael Morales first, then the winner of Makhachev vs. Prates

Here’s the practical problem with all the rematch talk: the queue. Garry isn’t calling for an immediate second shot. Instead, he has named Michael Morales as the only fight that makes sense, telling Eze Talks Sports that beating the unbeaten Ecuadorian would make his case undeniable.

When I beat him, I’m the only one who deserves a title shot, even though Islam and I have just fought. Whether Islam wins, whether Carlos Prates wins the next fight, it’s two massive rematches.

Ian Machado Garry, via Eze Talks Sports

• Michael Morales — unbeaten at 19-0, 7-0 in the UFC, coming off a stoppage of Sean Brady and three straight first-round knockouts.
• Carlos Prates — the frontrunner for Makhachev’s next title defense, riding two straight knockout wins over former champions Leon Edwards and Jack Della Maddalena; his lone UFC loss came against Garry in April 2025.

The math works either way, as Garry sees it. If Makhachev beats Prates, a Garry-Makhachev rematch carries an obvious storyline. If Prates wins the belt, Garry holds a win over him — and a victory over Morales would strengthen either case. For now, though, he sits behind both Prates and Morales in the title-shot pecking order, despite holding the No. 2 spot on the Meta UFC rankings and No. 1 on the media panel, per BJPENN.com.

White’s warning that Garry might not get another chance this big hangs over all of it. The rebuttal from two respected coaches, and the fighter’s own certainty, says otherwise. The next move is Morales — and nothing else gets Garry back to Makhachev faster.