McGregor Hails Garry's 'Champion Mindset'

Conor McGregor has praised Ian Machado Garry's response to his UFC 330 title loss, commenting "Champion mindset!" on the Irishman's post-fight Instagram video.

Garry dropped a unanimous decision to Islam Makhachev in Philadelphia last weekend in his first shot at UFC gold. Despite the defeat, the 28-year-old was defiant afterwards.

"Tonight wasn't my night. I feel great, I did great — Islam was just better than me tonight, and that's OK. I'm not disheartened by this. I'm bulletproof in my mind. I'll be back. I just fought arguably the greatest fighter we've ever seen in this sport and I pushed him to the f—ing wire. I'm so proud of myself, my team, and everything we've done,” Gary

McGregor, himself recovering from the ACL injury that ended his UFC 329 comeback against Max Holloway in seconds last month, offered his support publicly. Before UFC 329, McGregor had teased a future welterweight title showdown with Garry. That plan is now on hold indefinitely.

Garry's loss snapped a run that included wins over Carlos Prates and former champion Belal Muhammad. He remains widely regarded as the future of the welterweight division — and at 28, with a five-round title fight already on his résumé, the argument is hard to dismiss.