This is sneakily the best fight on the card. Two high level strikers trying to advance in the division. Ian Garry is young, undefeated and looking for credibility. MVP is already established but running out of time to do something in the UFC. While they are both strikers, they have very different style. Ian is a calculated striker but very traditional in his approach. MVP is very unorthodox and lunges into exchanges with spins and creativity. If Garry was more of a brawler I would actually be higher on him here, thats how Mike Perry beat MVP. But given Ian's chiny-ness and MVPs ability to close distance in a hurry, I actually am leaning MVP here. Of course Ian is at Chute Box and may turn into a cage control grappler which would suck, but either way, I'm very excited for this fight.
Ian Machado Garry
Ian Garry is a solid striker with crazy hand speed and fantastic footwork. He is hittable but lands an impressive almost 7 significant strikes per minute and has solid enough takedown defense to keep fights standing. While he does have power, it is not necessarily one punch KO power, its more timing and speed that catches his opponents off guard. Some may say he has had an easy road in the UFC but he did battle through adversity in the Song Kenan fight where he was dropped early. He is coming off the close win over Geoff Neal where is was clear Ian was the more technical striker.
Michael Page
Michael Venom Page is a savage striker that has been very successful in Bellator. He is certainly a few years past his prime, but he is still an insanely dangerous striker with a sport karate background. His striking style is awkward and unorthodox, but it is very effective. He is insanely accurate and very powerful. He is very long and uses his range well on the outside before leaping in and working his kickboxing. His takedown defense is solid and you will not see him attempt any offensive takedowns. He is coming off the win over Kevin Holland that was essentially a clinic in MVPs creativity.