'I promise you - I'm bringing UFC back to Ireland'

Garry has finished his last two opponents with eight stoppages in 12 professional bouts.

Ian Machado Garry misses home but the large Irish contingent means Boston, Massachusetts is the next best thing.

"It gives me a little bit of feeling like I'm in Dublin. But it ain't home. It ain't Dublin. And the Irish deserve a UFC card back in Dublin. We deserve it."

It has been eight years since the UFC held an event in Ireland, with home favourite Paddy Holohan losing to American Louis Smolka in the main event.

Despite being arguably the biggest superstar in the history of the sport, Conor McGregor has only headlined at home once, in 2014, with the UFC often opting to stage the former two-time champion's fights in Las Vegas as his popularity soared.

Although there are UFC stars who are popular in Ireland - such as Iceland's Gunnar Nelson, who trains in Dublin - the country has lacked its own fighter in the promotion with pulling power even close to McGregor's.

But Portmarnock's Garry believes that is about to change.

The 25-year-old, who is unbeaten during his 12-fight career and 13th in the welterweight rankings, faces American Neil Magny at UFC 292 on Saturday.

"I promise you, I am absolutely going to bring the UFC back to Ireland," said Garry.

"And I believe I'm two fights away. I've got Neil Magny on Saturday night, then I'll fight again in December against whoever wants to step up.

"Then I absolutely, unquestionably, have every single bit of pull to bring the UFC back to Ireland, putting me on as the main event and bringing that excitement, that joy, that energy back to Irish MMA, because we deserve it."

Following Tom Aspinall's win over Marcin Tybura in London in July, UFC chief Dave Shaw said the promotion was targeting a return to Ireland in the future.

The prospect of fighting in front of a Dublin crowd fills Garry with pride.

"It would make me very proud because it would make me feel like I have achieved something I wanted to," he said.

"And there's a whole wave of Irish MMA behind me. We are still capable of being one of the best nations in fighting. The fighting is so deep in our core, in our spirit and everything we do as a nation.

"The fans in Ireland are just different, we need the UFC back and I'm going to do that."

'I've been a nomad for two years'

Garry trained in boxing as a youngster but was inspired to branch out into different forms of martial arts by McGregor's success in the UFC.

In 2021, he became the welterweight champion in UK-based promotion Cage Warriors, before celebrating with a holiday in Costa Rica.

It was there he was offered a UFC contract, and Garry - along with his wife and his son - have lived without a fixed home since.

"I live out of a suitcase! I've been living out of a suitcase for two years," said Garry.

"I've been on a journey of growth and evolution, trying to soak in as much knowledge as I can in a short amount of time so for every single fight I'm a different fighter."

Garry adds that experiencing different cultures and forms of martial arts have helped his development as a fighter.

In preparation to face Magny, who was a late injury replacement for Geoff Neal, Garry has been training in Brazil for just over two months.

"When you travel the world and you train in Brazil, when you train in America, when you've trained with some of the best coaches in the UK and Europe and Ireland... how can you not grow and evolve in a way that's not far superior than someone who's going to the same place every day and doing the same schedule every week?" said Garry.

But Garry's lifestyle may be about to change because of his son.

"I've been a nomad for two years and I have no problem continuing that lifestyle, but I have a little baby here who deserves a home," he added.

"He deserves a garden to go out in and crawl around in and have his toys in, so don't get me wrong we're going to travel a lot more in this life, but we need to find a home."

'My focus is to be one of the greatest'

Garry celebrated with a McGregor-esque strut after defeating Song Kenan in March

Garry has only been a fighting professionally for four years but is already the biggest Irish star in the UFC while McGregor remains inactive.

Like McGregor, Garry exudes confidence - a trait he says is inherited from his father - but he backs up his words with performances in the octagon.

In five UFC bouts, Garry has finished three of them, with his past two wins against Daniel Rodriguez and Song Kenan showcasing his elite striking.

He is just two years into his UFC career, but Garry already has lofty ambitions.

"The biggest thing for me is I don't fight for money, I don't fight because I have to fight, I fight because I love to fight," said Garry.

"My body, my brain, my soul - everything about me operates best because I get to do what I love every single day.

"I see far too many people talk about 'go get that money' - what legacy does that make? What about going out there and making that legacy?

"Going out there and earning the right to be called one of the greatest of all time - that's my focus."