Conor McGregor lauded as 'absolute genius' by Ian Garry for being called out by three UFC champions

Up-and-coming welterweight Ian Garry praised Conor McGregor for being an "absolute genius" at promoting himself.

Garry, a self-professed McGregor fan, said only 'The Notorious' can stay relevant in three different weight divisions despite being inactive. During an interview with Andrew Whitelaw of Sportskeeda MMA, Garry was asked who he thinks his fellow Irishman will fight next. In response, the 24-year-old said:

"Whoever he wants, he'll get. Me sitting here, thinking about who he's going to fight is just me being a fan. Everyone else is thinking, 'Who is he gonna fight?' But he's hit up three different weight divisions. He's had Volkanovski talking about him, he's got Charles Oliveira talking about him, and he's got Kamaru Usman talking about him."

In recent months, McGregor has been linked to three different UFC champions. Featherweight titleholder Alexander Volkanovski recently said he's eager to fight McGregor, while Charles Oliveira claimed he'd let the Irishman cut in line for a potential championship fight at lightweight.

Kamaru Usman, meanwhile, addressed McGregor's recent string of call outs. 'The Nigerian Nightmare' responded by labeling McGregor a "clout chaser" in an interview with Sky Sports, but did not close the door on the possibility of fighting him at some point.

Garry added that he admires McGregor's ability to draw attention from fans and his fellow fighters. The Dublin native continued:

"Do you know any single other fighter in the world right now that has three different weight divisions – three different champions – speaking about someone who's currently technically still out injured that isn't ready to fight yet? No. The dude's amazing at what he does. He knows what he's doing. He knows how to get people talking. He know's how to market himself. He's an absolute genius at this."

Check out our exclusive interview with Ian Garry below:

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Conor McGregor hypes up Ian Garry ahead of UFC 273

Conor McGregor offered some words of encouragement for Ian Garry as 'The Future' prepares for his upcoming bout at UFC 273 on Saturday. During an ambush interview outside an Irish courthouse, McGregor was asked by Mirror Fighting if he had a message Garry, to which the former champ-champ replied:

"I wish [Ian Garry] well. He's doing all the right things. He's hitting all the right buttons. Hits the butt of the chin best, so I'm excited to see him back in there representing Ireland."

Check out Conor McGregor's message for Ian Garry:

Garry will take on fellow UFC upstart Darian Weeks in the event's featured preliminary bout. It will be Garry's sophomore appearance in the octagon after his successful debut last November.

Fans in India can watch UFC 273 LIVE on SONY TEN 2 (English), SONY TEN 3 (Hindi) & SONY TEN 4 (Tamil & Telugu) channels on 10th April 2022 from 7.30 AM IST.