Ian Garry is a few days away from making the walk against Michael Page at UFC 303 ... and despite Venom's resume, the Irish star sounded as confident as ever during a recent convo with TMZ Sports.
26-year-old Garry previewed his upcoming match against former Bellator star, MVP ... and while many people may consider Page a legend, Ian very clearly isn't impressed with Michael's work in the cage.
In fact, when asked how he would handle MVP's unique style in the Octagon, Garry did not hold back!
"If I was fighting 40-year-old butchers from the middle of nowhere who were just coming in to take a paycheck, then absolutely I f****** showboat," Garry said. "But, I'm a whole different kettle of fish. I guarantee you he's going to be very cautious of his shot selection."
Ian also flamed Michael's former promotion, Bellator ... saying he's only ever seen MVP highlights 'cause he's never watched a Bellator event. He also accused Page of "fighting nobodies."
FYI, 37-year-old Page is 22-2 overall ... and 1-0 in the UFC. He defeated Kevin Holland in March.
As for Garry, he's 14-0 overall, and 7-0 in the UFC ... with wins over Geoff Neal, Neil Magny, and Daniel Rodriguez.
The #7 ranked welterweight believes he can beat anyone in the 170 lb. division.
"I am confident I can beat any single fighter in the welterweight stood up on the feet," he said. "I'm confident I can get my hand raised and be a dominant champion in the UFC welterweight division for a long, long time to come, and I'm gonna prove it."
We also talked to the Dublin-born fighter about his disappointment over Conor McGregor's withdrawal from the card. Garry was pumped to finally share a card with The Notorious. While it won't happen this weekend, Ian is hopeful they can both hold down an Ireland-based event in the near future.
And, Conor or not, he plans to represent his homeland Saturday night.
"I'm still fighting. I'm still gonna go out there and do what my plan was, which is to represent the Irish," Garry said