UFC: Dublin's Ian Machado Garry aims to get back into the title picture

Michael Bolton

Ian Machado Garry will hope to get back into the title picture when he faces Carlos Prates in Kansas City.

This weekend, the Dublin fighter will become just the third Irishman to headline a UFC event.

After losing the first professional fight of his career to Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 310, Machado Garry gained popularity by dragging Rakhmonov into deep waters.

On a different night, Machado Garry might have pulled off the submission in the fifth round and would now be preparing for a title fight against Belal Muhammad.

The Dublin fighter had planned to take a break from the octagon but has stepped up on short notice once again to face one of the division's most powerful punchers in Prates.

[caption id="attachment_1755989" align="alignnone" width="819"]img Photo: Sofascore.[/caption]

Prates' last win was a brutal knockout of veteran Neil Magny.

He had been scheduled to fight Geoff Neal at UFC 314, but an injury to Neal led to this interesting match-up.

Expect Machado Garry to fight on the outside in the striking exchanges while looking for takedowns when available.

He has come close to submission wins in his last two fights, against Michael "Venom" Page and Rakhmonov, and under the guidance of Charles Oliveira, would love to make this the weekend it finally comes off.

Prates starts fights quickly, with knockout wins in rounds one and two in all his UFC bouts. If Machado Garry can survive the early pressure, it will test Prates' cardio — something he has not yet had to rely on.

Elsewhere on the card, former title challenger Anthony Smith will face Zhang Mingyang in what could be the final fight of Smith’s career.

In what should be a fun featherweight bout, a win for David Onama would put him in the rankings when he faces Giga Chikadze.

To get the main card underway, Ikram Aliskerov faces André Muniz in the middleweight division.