Makhachev breaks UFC consecutive-win record with decision over Machado Garry
Islam Makhachev defeated Ian Machado Garry by unanimous decision at UFC 330 in Philadelphia on 16 August 2026, defending his welterweight title at the Xfinity Mobile Arena and extending his streak to 17 successive UFC wins, surpassing Anderson Silva's 13-year mark.
A former lightweight world champion who moved up to welterweight, 34-year-old Makhachev was described in the report as solidifying his standing among the sport's elite and took his professional record to 29 wins and one defeat with the victory; 28-year-old Machado Garry suffered the second loss of his 19-fight career and missed a chance to become the first Irish UFC champion since Conor McGregor.
Makhachev controlled large portions of the bout, taking Machado Garry down at the first attempt and keeping the challenger pinned against the cage for much of the opening round while the Irishman worked to defend on the mat.
The Russian extended his dominance in the second round by landing a head kick that knocked Machado Garry down before slamming him to the canvas; although Machado Garry landed several kicks midway through the contest, Makhachev repeatedly reasserted control when the pair grappled.
Statistically Makhachev secured seven unanswered takedowns and accumulated more than 12 minutes of control time compared with Machado Garry's 34 seconds, while the Irishman outlanded Makhachev 29 significant strikes to 22; the judges returned a unanimous decision in Makhachev's favour. In the ring the fighters embraced and Machado Garry raised Makhachev's arm in a show of respect.
"Ian is a great fighter, good man and I respect him. He gave me a hard time but I still prove every fight," said 34-year-old Makhachev. After the fight Machado Garry addressed the crowd: "To all my fans, Ireland, everybody, I'm sorry I couldn't get this done," said Machado Garry. "But I stand here as a man proud of what I've done, proud of where I came from and proud where this will take me. To all the fans who doubt me, I'll be back."
In the co-main event Mackenzie Dern beat Gillian Robertson on points to make the first defence of her strawweight title, winning by unanimous decision to claim her fourth straight victory; Dern, 33, came close to finishing 31-year-old Robertson several times and was rarely threatened. "My first title win I got taken down a lot of times so I've been working on my wrestling. I'm still the champion," said Dern.
The UFC also announced further title fights for its schedule: Australia's Alexander Volkanovski will defend his featherweight title against Russia's Movsar Evloev at UFC 333 in Abu Dhabi on 24 October, with Petr Yan set to defend the bantamweight belt in a rematch against Merab Dvalishvili on the same card; the event will also feature Lone'er Kavanagh versus Ramazan Tamirov in a flyweight contest and Arnold Allen against Aaron Pico.
UFC 333 on 24 October in Abu Dhabi is now confirmed as the organisation's next major event featuring multiple title defences and the announced undercard bouts.