Ireland tried. Australia tried. And now it’s Georgia’s turn to try and solve the puzzle that is Dagestani wrestling in MMA.
For over a decade, Dagestani fighters have been dominating in the UFC using their
particular brand of grueling grappling, best displayed by Khabib Nurmagomedov. He was trained by his father Abdulmanap, who also trained Islam Makhachev and a ton of other guys from the region. Now Khabib continues in his father’s footsteps, and the country continues to churn out top level fighters.
No one could solve Khabib’s game, and now we’ll see whether anyone can defeat the fighters under Khabib’s tutelage. Ireland tried, with Conor McGregor and Paul Hughes failing. Australia came close, with Alexander Volkanovski taking Makhachev to the brink of defeat in 2023.
Aided by fellow Aussie Craig Jones, countryman Jack Della Maddalena beat Islam teammate Belal Muhammad, but then got dominated by Makhachev at UFC 322. Add in Makhachev’s KO win over Volkanovski in their rematch and it’s safe to say the Australian rivalry is over.
Now there is a new country being put forward as the antidote to Team Khabib’s poison: Georgia, which produced UFC champs Ilia Topuria and Merab Dvalishvili. Merab already has a win over Dagestan’s Umar Nurmagomedov, and he made it look relatively easy.
“Jack needs an entire camp dedicated just to wrestling,” Topuria tweeted after UFC 322. “What a disappointment of a champion. You should go to Georgia to learn something.”
Not a bad idea, according to welterweight contender Ian Machado Garry. Garry is set to fight Belal Muhammad in the co-main event of UFC Qatar this Saturday (Nov. 22, 2025), and he could be next for Makhachev with an impressive enough performance. And he says he’ll head to Georgia to prepare for his title shot.
“I swear to God, yesterday I spoke to my wife about coming to Georgia,” Garry told Setanta Sports (via Red Corner MMA). “When I fight Islam Makhachev — Georgia, all the Georgians out there, I need help. I’m gonna want your help. So I’m going to come to Georgia. I want help, and I want bodies to help me prepare and beat Islam Makhachev.”
“So Georgia, my brothers, I will see you soon.”
Garry will have to defeat former welterweight champion Belal Muhammad first, which bettors seem to believe he will. After opening up a slight -180 favorite to Muhammad’s +155, Garry is now as much as a -300 to +240 favorite to beat “Remember The Name.” The odds on him actually getting a title shot off that win? Maybe not as good with Team Makhachev trying to put their finger on the scale for a Kamaru Usman title fight.
