UFC 292 has added a banger in the welterweight division. RTE Sport was the first to report earlier today that top fifteen welterweights Ian Garry (12-0) and Geoff Neal (15-5) will battle it out at the August PPV that takes place in Boston.
UFC 292 goes down on August 19th and given the heavy Irish presence in Boston, it’s not surprising to see Garry on the ticket. However, I’m not going to lie, I’m fascinated by the matchup choice. Geoff Neal is currently the 8th ranked welterweight in the promotion.
He’s coming off a loss to Shavkat Rakhmonov back at UFC 285 in March. However, Neal pushed Rakhmonov harder than anyone has before in that fight. Prior to that fight with Shavkat, he had won two straight over Santiago Ponzinibbio and a knockout win over Vicente Luque.
Neal has some of the best boxing and power in the welterweight division. After Garry’s last win, he mentioned Neal Magny as a guy he would be interested in. However, the promotion is having him take on even steeper competition in Handz of Steel.
UFC 292
Ian Garry scored a first round knockout over Daniel Rodriguez a month ago at UFC Charlotte. With that win, he moved to 5-0 inside the octagon and he debuted in the top fifteen coming in at 13th. Now, he has his opportunity to jump into the top ten.
I figured the promotion would give him someone between 10-15, but it’s evident they are ready to see him take a jump into the top ten. Garry thrived in his jump up in competition against D-Rod, but Geoff Neal is a completely different animal.
Given Garry’s hype factor, if he goes out there and defeats someone like Geoff Neal in convincing fashion, he’s likely only a win or two away from a UFC title shot. August 19th is going to be the biggest moment of Garry’s career inside the octagon. Either he legitimizes himself as a top ten contender or Geoff Neal plays ultimate spoiler.