IAN MACHADO GARRY was supposed to realise a career-long dream at UFC 303 this weekend.

But the hopes the Irishman had since the tender age of 15 were cruelly shattered, perhaps temporarily, by a situation completely out of his control.

Ian Garry returns to the octagon at UFC 303 in the early hours of Sunday morningCredit: Getty

Garry was set to fulfil a career-long dream on the International Fight Week cardCredit: GETTY

The 26-year-old was set to share the card with his hero Conor McGregorCredit: INSTAGRAM@THENOTORIOUSMMA

The Irishman was left devastated by his countryman’s withdrawal from the card due to injuryCredit: INSTAGRAM@THENOTORIOUSMMA

That dream, of course, was sharing a card with the man who inspired him to pursue mixed martial arts as a career – Conor McGregor.

But injury to his countryman – who broke his left pinky toe earlier this month – has, for the time being, put paid to that dream becoming a reality.

The prospect of one day sharing a card and representing Ireland with McGregor has got Garry through many a hard training session.

So his devastation at The Notorious’ unfortunate withdrawal from the International Fight Week card is understandable.

“Yes, it could’ve [been so much bigger],” Garry lamented in an exclusive interview with SunSport. “It sucks.

“It sucks because I was excited for it.

“I didn’t want to get my hopes up on it because I definitely didn’t want to be massively disappointed.

“But obviously when you find out the person you’ve been inspired by isn’t going to be on the card, [you’re disappointed].

“But also the fact that the two of us could’ve represented Ireland together on the biggest stage and have two of Ireland’s biggest athletes together standing side-by-side flying the flag.

“And going, ‘Right, we’re gonna show up and we’re gonna do this together and we’re gonna take over again.’

“That was going to be something I was excited for. He’ll be back.

“I have no doubt he’ll be back.

“It sucks for now, but everyone in the world wants to see that man fight again.”

As disappointed as he is about McGregor’s injury-enforced withdrawal, Garry is refusing to give up hope of one day making the walk just moments before his hero.

“Yeah, for sure,” he said when asked if he still has aspirations about sharing a card with ‘Mystic Mac’. “It would be a dream coming true for me as a fan.

“And as someone who’s completely and emotionally invested in his career and everything that he’s done.

It sucks because I was excited for it.”

Ian Machado Garry On Conor McGregor Falling Off UFC 303

“You understand the power that Conor had and generated within Europe.

“But in Ireland, it was just so much more for people to latch on to and get excited about.

“Like this guy from Dublin, Ireland he was like half an hour away from where I live.

“He’s changing the MMA world, he’s changing this sport and he’s having the time of his life doing it.

“So to be able to be emotionally invested in his career, for him to inspire me to then go, ‘That’s the life I want to have.

“‘That’s, that’s what I want to do. I want to be a UFC fighter, I want to be a UFC world champion, I want to do something similar but my way.

Conor McGregor inspired Ian Garry to pursue mixed martial artsCredit: INSTAGRAM@IANGARRY

‘The Future’ hasn’t given up hope of sharing a card with McGregor or bringing the UFC back to DublinCredit: Getty

“To have that full circle moment of being sat at home in Dublin, Ireland watching his fights in his press conferences and talking to my mates about it, to being sat side-by-side to him at the press conference.

“And just be like, ‘F**k like, OK, this is cool. Like Saturday night we go out and we do it together.’

“That would be a dream come true. And I fully believe me and Conor will get that.”

Garry’s desire to share a card with McGregor is only dwarfed by two things: winning UFC gold and bringing MMA’s top promotion back to the Emerald Isle.

“Having one person at the top is great to push it,” he said. “But having two is even better. It’s always better to have two.

“Maybe now we can get our Dublin Ireland show, maybe we can bring the UFC back to Ireland again. I hope so.”

Before Garry can think about bringing the UFC back to his hometown, he must first solve the bewitching puzzle that is Brit Michael ‘Venom’ Page.

On paper, victory over the former long-time Bellator welterweight will be one of the biggest scalps of Garry’s career.

Surprisingly, however, the ‘The Future’ doesn’t foresee it breathing further life into his bid to become only the second Irish fighter to win a title in MMA’s top promotion.

He said: “When I win on Saturday night, it will absolutely push me up the rankings. But I don’t want nor do I believe it warrants a world title fight.

“I think there is to be more to be proved against competition that has been at that level for a long time, not one fight in the UFC.”

Ian Machado Garry takes on Michael ‘Venom’ Page at UFC® 303: PEREIRA vs PROCHAZKA on June 29th on TNT Sports 1. TNT Sports is available through its streaming destination discovery+ and across all major TV platforms. See here for more information.  

Ian Garry kicks off the UFC 303 main card against Brit Michael ‘Venom’ PageCredit: UFC