Undefeated welterweight contender Ian Machado Garry admits he studied musician Taylor Swift for ways to deal with hateful comments.
Ian Machado Garry has been the subject of severe online hate for a sizable part of his young UFC career, with the decision to turn off his Instagram comments made after he studied how another superstar, Taylor Swift, dealt with abusive messages.
“The more I succeed the more people are going to hate, but we’ve learned in awesome ways” the rising contender explained, which crucially includes taking inspiration from stars outside of his industry.
Garry on how Taylor Swift helped him deal with online hate
It’s safe to say that select portions of the global MMA fanbase will be hoping that the 13-0 Irishman comes up short against #8 ranked Geoff ‘Handz of Steal’ Neal, this weekend at UFC 298.
Whilst picking against any fighter is naturally part of the game, there is a line between supporting the opposition and attacking an athlete or their family with cruel online remarks – something that Garry has had to deal with for the better part of three years.
In a fascinating conversation about ‘love and hate’ with BloodyElbow’s Tim Bissell, the welterweight contender shared how turning off the comments of his social media pages was for “protecting the peace between me and my fanbase.”
Garry says that if you are a fan of his work in the cage, there’s no reasonable explanation as to why you would want to read or engage with hate comments on his social media, adding that his team “looked at someone like Taylor Swift” as an example of what to do when things turn sour online:
“Taylor Swift turned off her comments in 2019 because of hurtful comments and negative comments that affected the way she went about her days. So, she turned them off because she doesn’t need that input in her life. That’s exactly what we’ve done.”
“I can turn off the hate and I can get rid of it and there’s no benefit for me or any of my fans to see it,” he said.
Whilst some of the backlash against Garry has arguably been warranted given some of his own promotional antics, it’s hard to argue against this attitude with the only people benefiting from his online hate being his future opponents.
“If you’re a fan of mine and I’m doing my job and you’re coming out to see the work I’m doing, I don’t want you to see the hate, so I’ll block it out, I’ll protect the peace.”
Ian Machado Garry takes on Geoff Neal this weekend at UFC 298, a win would see Garry move up to at least #8 in the division, which could open the door for a potential world title shot later in 2024.