Ian Machado Garry will be Ireland’s sole representative at this weekend’s UFC 303.

Dubliner Garry will defend his unbeaten, 14-0 career record on the main card of the Las Vegas event against the former Bellator standout Michael ‘Venom’ Page on a card that was originally envisaged as the return date for Conor McGregor — before a toe injury delayed his fight with Michael Chandler.

Garry, like McGregor, entered the UFC on the back of a title-winning performance in Cage Warriors and as such he has been frequently compared to the sport’s Irish pacesetter.

And these are comparisons that Garry says he doesn’t mind.

“Anyone saying that I am trying to be like Conor McGregor or I am trying to do something to be like Conor, I take that as a compliment,” he told the media, including The Mac Life, in Las Vegas on Wednesday.

“He’s the greatest star the sport has ever seen. So if you’re comparing me to him, it means I’m doing something right. Now, people are saying I want to be like him. I’m not trying to be like him in any way, shape, or form. Have I been inspired by him? Absolutely. How many people talked about Kobe Bryant trying to be like Michael Jordan? Kobe Bryant went out and made a legacy of his own. Kobe Bryant went out and made a legacy of his own in his own way, but having similar traits and styles to Jordan.

“I’m born and bred from Dublin, Ireland,” he added.

“Conor was born and bred from Dublin, Ireland. He talks the talk and walks the walk and backs it up. I’m the exact same. Conor has done everything he’s said he’s going to do in his career. I have yet to prove what I have done and what I need to do. That’s my job. My job is to continue what I’m doing on my journey to destiny.

“The goal that I’ve been set, the destiny that’s been written for me, it’s my goal to do it my way. At the end of it, people are just going to say, ‘Wow, this kid was special. He just did it his own way.’ That’s the only way I look at it.”