Welterweight Ian Garry will face off against Geoff Neal as a supporting bout on the UFC 292 undercard.
The undefeated Garry is not taking a break, hoping to establish himself as a serious player at welterweight. Neal presents a significant step up in class from Daniel Rodriguez, who Garry defeated by first-round TKO last May.
#8-ranked Neal is coming off a competitive loss to Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 285. In that fight, Neal missed weight but pushed the surging Rakhmonov to the limit before succumbing to a rear-naked choke in the third round.
Garry will be making his third appearance in the octagon this year. Prior to the Rodriguez bout, Garry battered Song Kenan on the UFC 285 prelims. Though Garry is facing another fighter likely to work to his advantage, Neal is a stern test.
Prior to the loss to Rakhmonov, Neal stopped the durable Vicente Luque and beat Santiago Ponzinibbio. He’s tangled with Stephen Thompson, Neil Magny, Kevin Holland, and Belal Muhammad over the course of his 10-year career.
Considering Garry’s aggressive run and Neal’s toughness, this is a huge boost to the developing UFC 292 card in Boston. The card features Aljamain Sterling defending his bantamweight title against Sean O’Malley in the main event.
Garry beating Neal as impressively as he did Rodriguez is sure to land him in the top 10. For Neal, stopping Garry’s hype train following his Fight of the Night effort against Rakhmonov will keep him in striking range for a title shot.
