Ian Machado Garry narrowly defeated Michael Page in a closely contested fight at UFC 303, winning by decision after three rounds marked by Garry’s grappling and Page’s striking, despite UFC CEO Dana White believing the match was a draw.
Ian Machado Garry promised one of the greatest performances in history ahead of his fight against Michael Page on Saturday night at UFC 303. What resulted was a back-and-forth battle that went right down to the final horn.
Garry ultimately eked out a close decision win after three rounds. Despite coming from a striking background, Garry actually turned to his grappling to slow down Page.
Page landed the better punches and kicks throughout the fight. The final decision really came down to scoring in the third round.
All three judges gave Garry the nod, which in turn gave him the victory. For his part, UFC CEO Dana White seemed to disagree with that assessment.
“Sean [Shelby] and Mick [Maynard] felt that fight would play out exactly the way it did,” White said at the post-fight press conference. “I had that fight a draw.”
“If [the judges] came out and said that fight was a draw, that’s exactly what I thought too,” White added. “Obviously, Ian won the first round, MVP won the second round, and it was 50/50 in the third round.”
It’s incredibly rare to ever see judges use a 10-10 round. That’s the only way Garry and Page could’ve ended up as a draw.
Still, White believes the action was that close during the third round. It served as a microcosm of the entire fight.
Garry controlled the grappling while Page excelled with his striking. Perhaps Page’s biggest mistake cost him dearly.
During one exchange, Page ended up on top of Garry when they fell to the ground. Rather than stay in a dominant position, he decided to stand back up again.
He looked for a knockout that never came. “What was crazy was ‘MVP’ had that top position and he gave it up,” White said.
“He could have just rode that thing out and won the round,” White continued. “He stood up and gave up that top position.”
The final result was Garry getting the nod on scorecards. Page suffered his first UFC loss after signing with promotion as free agent.
Regardless of how White scored it, Garry has plenty of options awaiting him following this latest win. He remained undefeated and took another step forward in welterweight division.