Five fighters to know before UFC 330 at Xfinity Mobile Arena, from an Irish Eagles fan to a ‘jiujitsu girl’

It’s fight week in Philadelphia, with UFC 330 taking place on Saturday at Xfinity Mobile Arena. This will be the first numbered event and first title fight held in Philadelphia in a decade and a half.

The card features 12 fights, including two championship bouts in the men’s welterweight division and the women’s strawweight division. With 24 fighters competing this weekend, here are five you should know before UFC 330 takes over South Philly …

Twenty-eight year old Ian Machado Garry will fight No. 1 ranked pound-for-pound fighter Islam Makhachev for the welterweight title in the main event of UFC 330.

» READ MORE: UFC 330 is coming to Philadelphia this weekend. Here’s everything to know, from local fighters to the match schedule.

Machado Garry is entering Saturday’s fight as a +270 underdog on DraftKings. Despite the odds, he showed complete confidence in himself before the fight by hanging up an empty frame for the championship belt in his home.

“The empty frame, it’s a manifestation and a visualization that I’ve put in the back of my mind for a long time,” Machado Garry said. “When I signed to UFC, I told everybody now that I’m here, I’m going to be a world champion. It’s a matter of time. It’s inevitable.

“When we bought our home and I framed my Cage Warriors World Title, I knew that there was going to be space. I knew that there was going to be a frame for my UFC world title. And I wanted to see it empty because every time I see it, it’s going to push me to fill it. This weekend, I’m going to win that belt, I’m going to go straight home and I’m going to put that UFC title in that frame.”

Machado Garry (17-1) is coming off a big decision win over Belal Muhammad. His only loss in his UFC career was to Shavkat Rahkmandov by decision in Dec. 2024. He is on a two-fight winning streak as he prepares to face his toughest challenge yet.

“Right now he has absolutely earned and deserved the title as the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the planet. It’s inarguable,” Garry said. “His record stands for itself. His achievements, his accolades. He’s done everything he’s needed to do to earn that. That is the exact person that I want to beat to prove that I’m the champion in the world. Because then there’s no doubt. There’s no excuses. It is undeniable that when I beat Islam [Mackhachev] on Saturday night, Ian Machado Garry is great.”

Machado Garry is hoping his love for the Birds can get the crowd on his side.

“I love the Eagles,” Garry said. “I’ve always liked the Eagles. I thought they were a phenomenal team. Saquon [Barkley] is absolutely one of my favorite players. I loved watching him when he signed — when he came out of the draft with the Giants, he was unbelievable. And then I thought he needed to go to a better team. And obviously, the second he did, he gets the 2,000 yards, he goes out and he wins the Super Bowl. It’s perfect.”

Saturday’s main event will be Makhachev’s second fight in the welterweight division.

In his division debut, he defeated Jack Della Maddelana by decision to become the new welterweight champion last November. After completing his second fight camp at welterweight, Makhachev said he feels more comfortable this time around.

”[My] opponent is good,” Mackhachev said. “Good skills, good fighter. Has all the skills. And that’s why I think it’s going to be a good fight for all MMA fans. But I will be looking for a finish. Any chance I have, I will finish my opponent. And this Saturday I will show best performance.”

Makhachev (28-1) is cementing his legacy as an all-time great. The former lightweight champion successfully defended his title four times before moving to welterweight. And now, there’s more than just the title on the line. There’s a spot in the history books waiting for him to sign his name.

Makhachev is currently tied with Anderson Silva for the longest winning streak in UFC history with 16 consecutive wins. With a win on Saturday, Makhachev will surpass that number.

“I want to be in the history of this sport,” Islam said. “I want to be the best fighter in the world. I want to be in the Hall of Fame. My legacy is still growing and I will fight many years more.”

» READ MORE: Dana White announces two title fights for UFC 330 in Philly. But will a local fighter make the card?

After winning the vacant women’s strawweight title in October 2025 with a five-round decision win over Virna Jandiroba, Mackenzie Dern, 33, will defend her title for the first time against Gillian Robertson (17-8).

“I was telling my coaches right in the beginning of camp, man this feels so different than when I was trying to accomplish the belt,” Dern said. “But my level in striking, in grappling. I think taking that pressure out of my head and wondering the whole time if I would be able to become champion, gave a lot of space for me to get better on little things that we have been trying to get better at. So, my level has gone up so much just from this last camp.”

Both Dern (16-5) and Robertson are submission artists. Dern has eight submission victories while Robertson currently has nine — holding the women’s UFC record. Heading into Saturday, Dern is excited to face an opponent with a similar fighting style.

“I’m super excited to fight another submission artist,” Dern said. “So, for me, being a jiujitsu girl, I’m usually trying to chase the person or they don’t really want to engage in the fight with me. I know that this is going to be very different and then also this being my first title defense, now the belt is mine. Before this, I was just trying to accomplish something.

“Now, I’m like ‘OK, I got to defend it I don’t want anyone to come in and take what’s mine.’ So, there’s definitely this big motivation behind it but the pressure is off my shoulders and I’m super excited to be able to go and have fun and see who can submit who because I think we’re going to have a big exchange with jiujitsu.”

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Thirty-nine year old Jeremiah Wells is the only Philly native featured on the card. He is set to to fight 28-year-old Myktybek Orolbai (16-2) in the early prelims.

“It means a lot, man,” Wells said. “It’s been a long time coming, just to fight in front of my family and my fans. I do [wish more Philly fighters were on the card], we just got that dog in us. That grit. This town — sometimes we get a little dirty. We get our hands dirty.”

Wells (13-4-1) trains out of Marquez MMA, located on Worth Street, alongside other Philly UFC fighters, including Pat Sabatini, Sean Brady, Joe Pyfer, and Andre Petroski. He’s currently coming off a decision win to Themba Gorimbo (November 2025) after a 21-month break from competing due to a broken hand and torn Achilles.

Edson Barboza made his UFC debut in 2010, defeating Mike Lullo by TKO. Sixteen years later and the 40-year-old still gets the same “scary” feeling walking out to the octagon.

“One-hundred percent,” Barboza said. “Always the same feeling. I think if I stopped feeling like that, I would stop fighting. It wouldn’t make sense any more. The same feeling, the same scary [feeling]. The part I really love is all the crazy feelings.”

Barboza (24-14) is now entering his 33rd fight with the UFC as he prepares to compete against 30-year-old Esteban Ribovics at UFC 330.

Barboza has given fans plenty of memorable moments throughout his 16-year UFC career. But perhaps his most memorable moment was when he delivered a historic UFC knockout, landing a spinning wheel kick knockout over Terry Etim at UFC 142 in 2012.

Despite earning 10 Fight of the Night bonuses, there’s only one way he wants to be remembered.

“I want to be remembered as the guy that really loved my job,” Barboza said. “I really love fighting, guys. I really love it. Every time I step into the octagon, it’s not about the money, it’s about the love. I really love this.”