Ian Machado Garry is confident he will hear the words ‘and new’ when he fights Islam Makhachev for the welterweight title.On Wednesday, UFC CEO Dana White announced Machado Garry would be the first Irishman since Conor McGregor to contest a championship bout when he faces Makhachev on August 15.Machado Garry cemented his status as the No. 1 contender at welterweight by defeating former champion Belal Muhammad in his last appearance at UFC QatarGettyMakhachev made light work of Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 322 to become the new welterweight kingGettyThe pair are set to headline UFC 330 at Philadelphia’s Xfinity Mobile Arena, supported by a women’s strawweight title fight between champion Mackenzie Dern and Canadian Gillian Robertson.Former Cage Warriors champion Machado Garry has won 10 of his 11 UFC bouts, losing a close unanimous decision after five rounds with the currently injured Shavkat Rakhmonov in December 2024.He was upgraded to the UFC’s No. 2-ranked welterweight when he defeated former champion Belal Muhammad in his last fight in November at UFC Qatar.Just one week before his victory over Muhammad, Makhachev had moved up to the welterweight division and dethroned Jack Della Maddalena to become a two-division champion, having also won gold at lightweight.Della Maddalena lost his next fight last month to Carlos Prates, who Machado Garry also beat last year, meaning the latter was bumped up to the No. 1 contender spot and the clear favourite to fight Makhachev next.The Future is bright“And New…” Machado Garry captioned a social media post on Wednesday, reacting to the news of his clash with Makhachev.The message to the champion was clear as ‘The Future’ had written Makhachev’s name on the classic word game Hangman, following up with ‘I’m next.’Should the 28-year-old score an upset over Makhachev, he would be the first Irish champion since McGregor won the lightweight title in November 2016 by knocking out Eddie Alvarez.McGregor’s unsuccessful challenge to Khabib Nurmagomedov‘s throne at 155lbs is the last time a fighter from Ireland has contested for a UFC championship belt. Ironically, Nurmagomedov is the head coach of the feared Makhachev, who has won 28 of his 29 professional MMA fights. View this post on Instagram UFC 330 takes place on August 15 in PhiladelphiaGettyIn fact, the 34-year-old from Dagestan, Russia, is currently on a 16-fight winning streak in the UFC and would surpass Anderson Silva‘s record should he defeat Machado Garry.“Islam Makhachev is the protege of Khabib,” Machado Garry explained after his last victory.“I am the protege of Conor. It’s the perfect fight to make.“[Makhachev] has to take me down. I have to keep it on the feet. I’m not afraid of any man walking this earth.”Makhachev’s dominanceMakhachev became UFC lightweight champion in 2022 by submitting Charles Oliveira.He defended it four times against Alexander Volkanovski twice, Dustin Poirier, and Renato Moicano before vacating the belt and moving up to 170lbs.Makhachev, with UFC legend Nurmagomedov by his side, has worked his way up to becoming the promotion’s No. 1 pound-for-pound starGettySpeaking to Red Corner MMA, Makhachev was asked if Machado Garry has any dangerous aspects to his fighting style.“Yes, style-wise, he’s a tricky fighter,” Makhachev responded. “He constantly runs away, fights on the back foot. His opponents always have to chase him.“I wouldn’t say he’s an entertaining fighter. From this perspective, [Michael] Morales, for example, can wrestle. He goes forward.“But ‘going forward’ has nothing to do with Ian Garry.”To date, no other fights have been announced for UFC 330, which is the promotion’s next numbered card after McGregor’s return in Las Vegas on July 11.UFC ScheduleFor all the upcoming fights and results this year, check out talkSPORT.com’s UFC schedule.