Islam Makhachev retained the UFC welterweight title against Ian Machado Garry on Saturday, and the victory marked a major piece of history.
As Makhachev outpointed the divisive Irish star in the main event of UFC 330, he reached a record-breaking 17th consecutive win in the promotion. In doing so, he went clear of the legendary Anderson Silva, although there were moments when victory looked far from assured.
Makhachev, the UFC’s pound-for-pound No 1 fighter, was largely able to avoid tense striking exchanges with Machado Garry in the first two rounds, using his supreme wrestling to control the challenger. In fact, Makhachev surprisingly dropped Machado Garry with a head kick in round two, as the pair separated after a spell of wrestling against the fence.
But Machado Garry, 28, bounced back well to deny Makhachev, 34, a takedown in round three and seemingly steal the frame with some varied striking late on. What ensued was a crucial round, which Makhachev appeared to win as he was able to take down Machado Garry again, despite looking exhausted throughout.
In the co-main event, Mackenzie Dern retained the women’s strawweight title, outpointing Gillian Robertson. Re-live updates and see results from the UFC 330 main card and prelims, below:
