UFC’s Ian Garry Real Name: Controversy Involving Layla Machado’s Ex-Husband’s Middle Name Explained

Ian Garry is undoubtedly one of the most impressive prospects of the UFC. The Irishman has been in the Las Vegas-based promotion for around three years and is undefeated with eight wins on the trot since arriving at Dana White’s promotion owing to his elite-level striking prowess. Garry’s inside-the-Octagon business has surely made a lot of noise. However, things seem to be the same for ‘The Future’ due to a certain aspect of his personal life.

Some years ago, Ian Garry decided to change his name to ‘Ian Machado Garry’. Speculations and rumors arose that he’d taken his wife’s ex-husband’s name. The MMA fighter married his partner, Layla Anna-Lee, in Las Vegas on 26 February 2022. So is there any truth to the rumors?

Why did Ian Garry change his name? Is ‘Machado’ name connected to Richard Cullen?

Layla Machado, born Layla Anna-Lee, is a British television presenter and host known for her specialization in sports broadcasting. She was born in London on 22 March 1983 to a Brazilian mother and an English father of Irish and Scottish ancestry. Attending the Sylvia Young Theatre School in London played a significant role in shaping her career. Years later, she married and eventually separated from her ex, Richard Cullen.

So there is, in fact, no truth to the speculation of Ian Garry adopting his partner’s husband’s last name. Machado is actually Anna-Lee’s maiden name from her mother’s side. The TV presenter has made this clear, and she hasn’t tried to hide it from the public.

Anna-Lee has also made her mark in sports presenting, including hosting the BMX European Championships for Eurosport, major road cycling events, and National Championships for Sky Sports. In the sports world, she gained international recognition for her voice as she announced the opening ceremony and beach volleyball tournaments at the 2012 Summer Olympics. In spite of all of this, she still had to struggle with the name-calling and rumors spread online. This followed after her marriage to Garry.

Ian Garry built his fighting career exclusively under the Cage Warriors banner before making his transition to Dana White’s promotion. Their romantic relationship blossomed around 2020, coinciding with Garry’s rise as a promising prospect within the promotion. The two tied the knot in Las Vegas on February 26, 2022. On a joyful occasion, the undefeated star and his partner announced that they were expecting their first child in April 2022. This marked an exciting new chapter in their lives. And the children were a big reason for Garry to change his name.

Ian Garry is proud to have changed his name!

Ian Garry, a rising star in the world of mixed martial arts, and his wife Layla Anna-Lee were eagerly anticipating the arrival of their first child in April 2022. The couple’s excitement was coupled with a surprising change in Ian Garry’s nickname during his fight introduction at UFC 273. Renowned announcer Bruce Buffer introduced him as ‘Garry Machado’, leaving fans curious about the sudden alteration.

To provide clarity on the matter, ‘The Future’ had to explain his side of things. “The truth is I only did it because I wanted my son and my stepson to really feel connected,” Garry told CBS Sports. “I didn’t want them going through life with two separate surnames. I feel like there is a little bit of a disconnect. If you guys want to be brothers, I want to make sure you guys have that same connection.” In October 2022, Ian Garry and Layla Machado happily announced the birth of their baby boy, marking a joyous milestone in their journey as parents.

Despite the speculations on the internet surrounding Ian Garry’s decision to add his wife’s name to his government name, he did find support from a fellow UFC figure, who’s not a fighter, but a commentator-cum-analyst.

Ian Garry’s name change finds support from inside UFC

Earlier this year, UFC’s first-ever female commentator, Laura Sanko, seems to have had enough of the trolling that ensued on Ian Garry due to adopting his wife’s maiden name. So she decided to set the record totally straight by echoing the same reason ‘The Future’ shared, claiming the name change was a gesture from the Irishman for his children so that his entire household, especially his children, feel like they’re a “unit.”

“I’ll tell you the real story… the reason why he changed his name is because his wife had a son from her previous marriage and he wanted to make that son feel just as much as a part of the family as their son that they have together,” Laura Sanko stated on the ‘JAXXON Podcast’. “As a gesture of like, I want this family to be a unit, I’m gonna take not her ex-husband’s name, [use] her maiden name, and add it to our family name.”

On the fighting front, though, Ian Garry seems to be inching closer to realizing his dream and becoming the second Irishman to secure UFC gold. But before he gets there, the formidable Shavkat Rakhmonov stands in his way, as the duo prepares to butt heads at UFC 310. It’s two undefeated stars gunning for the title shot, and the whole theme of this matchup seems to be ‘somebody’s zero has to go’.

Whom do you see winning in the final pay-per-view of the year? Let us know in the comments down below.