Though he landed on the wrong side of the scorecards, Machado Garry didn’t lose any ground; instead, he showed he could hang with someone universally regarded as a deserving contender and possible future champion, cementing for many others what he’d believed all along: that the same descriptors applied to him as well.

A little more than four months after facing Rakhmonov, Machado Garry made his first main event appearance, besting knockout artist Carlos Prates by decision in Kansas City, before returning in November and outhustling the former champion Muhammad in Qatar to ensure he was on the short list of names to possibly face Makhachev in his first title defense.

THE EXPECTATIONS

When Machado Garry sat down with UFC.com earlier this week, he mentioned a quote that he likes a great deal that says, “I’m not in this world to live up to your expectations; I’m here to live up to mine.”

It might be the best way to understand the polarizing contender, who has — at least in terms of results — done what he’s said he was going to do to this point, and enters Saturday’s championship main event fully confident that he’s going to complete his mission with aplomb this weekend.

The spotlight has always been on Machado Garry and his unflinching self-belief from the outset of his career has made him someone who is often looked at more critically than many of his contemporaries. Whether you think he’s likable or unlikable, genuine or fake, none of those things should factor into assessing his talents, his results, or how successful he has been inside the Octagon, but they invariably creep in and color how he’s discussed and portrayed.