Ian Machado Garry booked to return at UFC 292 opposite Geoff Neal

Ian Machado Garry will get the toughest test of his career at UFC 292 as he looks to break into the top 10 of the welterweight division.

RTE Sport first broke the news that Garry is set to return to the Octagon at UFC 292 on August 19 in Boston, Massachusetts against Geoff Neal. The news was later confirmed by Garry on social media, who posted about the matchup. The main event of the pay-per-view card sees Aljamain Sterling defending his bantamweight title against Sean O’Malley.

Get Ready Boston 🇮🇪 pic.twitter.com/mHeACkjPIp

— “The Future” Ian Machado Garry (@iangarryMMA) June 14, 2023

Ian Machado Garry (12-0) entered the welterweight ranks with a first-round TKO win over Daniel Rodriguez at UFC Charlotte last month. The fight against Rodriguez was the toughest test of his career and the Irishman passed with flying colors and is now ranked 13th at welterweight. Garry is a perfect 5-0 in the UFC and beat Kenan Song, Gabe Green, Darian Weeks, and Jordan Williams, while also being the former Cage Warriors welterweight champ.

RELATED: Aljamain Sterling questions Sean O’Malley’s KO power, believes he’ll finish ‘Suga’ in round 1 at UFC 292.

Geoff Neal (15-5) suffered a third-round submission loss to Shavkat Rakhmonov back at UFC 285 in March which snapped his two-fight winning streak. On the win streak, he knocked out Vicente Luque and beat Santiago Ponzinibbio by split decision.

Neal is currently ranked eighth at welterweight and will be the first top-10 opponent Ian Garry will fight. In the UFC, Neal is 7-3 and holds notable wins over Belal Muhammad, Mike Perry, and Niko Price among others. His other two losses came to Stephen Thompson in a five-round main event decision loss to and Neil Magny by decision.

With the addition of Ian Machado Garry vs. Geoff Neal, UFC 292 is as follows:

• Aljamain Sterling vs. Sean O’Malley
• Zhang Weili vs. Amanda Lemos
• Ian Machado Garry vs. Geoff Neal
• Brad Tavares vs. Chris Weidman
• Mario Bautista vs. Cody Garbrandt
• Gerald Meerschaert vs. Andre Petroski
• Maryna Moroz vs. Karine Silva