By:
Paul Kelly
UFC lightweight contender Jalin Turner has credited Ian Machado Garry for his successful octagon return following retirement.
Turner retired after two defeats earlier this year, but returned with an emphatic Round 1 knockout victory at UFC 323.
Jalin Turner Credits Ian Garry For Successful UFC Return
After abruptly retiring from MMA earlier this year at just 29-years-old following successive stoppage defeats, Jalin Turner returned at UFC 323 and showed the world he is still very much a player in the lightweight division.
‘The Tarantula’ previously stated he had lost the drive to fight as well as battling some mental health issues, hence his shock retirement. However, Turner returned at UFC 323 and put in an impressive performance some nine months after his official retirement.
Turner knocked out Edson Barboza in Round 1 of their 155-pound contest, putting an end to his two-fight losing streak in emphatic fashion.
"HE LOOKED GOOOOD"
DC ain't lyin – Jalin Turner made it look easy!#UFC323 pic.twitter.com/pMIiekBVKi
— UFC_AUSNZ (@UFC_AUSNZ) December 7, 2025
Although Turner’s retirement was short-lived, he did remain in MMA in some capacity. After sharing some training sessions with Ian Machado Garry, Ireland’s next UFC champion hopeful, the American cornered Garry for his fight with Carlos Prates back in April.
Whilst working with Garry and his team, Turner admitted that he saw a ‘light’ which seemingly helped him get back to work and ultimately get back to winning ways inside the UFC octagon.
Although Mike Tyson reunited with Conor McGregor recently, Garry is firmly Ireland’s best MMA fighter as of today. This remains the case despite McGregor’s rumoured return at UFC White House next summer.
After helping the Irishman become the first man to beat Prates inside the UFC cage, with Garry winning via unanimous decision, Turner properly returned to training with the ambition of making a retirement U-turn.
He did just that in show-stopping fashion at UFC 323, securing his first stoppage win in over two years. In his post-fight press conference, Turner revealed that Garry had a major part to play in his successful octagon return.
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Jalin Turner: Working With Ian Garry ‘Showed Me A Light’
After cornering Ian Machado Garry for his unanimous decision victory over Carlos Prates back in April, Jalin Turner has revealed that working with the #2 ranked UFC welterweight contender showed him ‘a light’ which in turn helped with his own octagon return.
Following his Round 1 knockout of Edson Barboza at UFC 323, Turner told media members in his post-fight press conference that working alongside Garry and his team was a breath of fresh air:
“When I went to go help Ian Garry, it was so good,” Turner told MMA media members after his emphatic UFC 323 victory.
“Being around his family, being around his team, feeling the love that was radiating from everybody… His son is awesome. It just showed me a light,” the 29-year-old revealed.
https://twitter.com/ufc/status/1997461447572619297
Turner also revealed that Garry and his team saw his talents first-hand, telling him that retiring now would be a mistake given how talented a fighter Turner still is.
“They really told me that I should put away all the distractions because I’m too talented and too good to hang it up now,” concluded Turner.
The American MMA star did just that at UFC 323, with a potentially huge 2026 on the cards for ‘The Tarantula’ after getting back to winning ways and ending his short-lived retirement.
For Ian Garry, he can take major credit for helping Turner find himself inside the cage once again.
In the meantime, Garry is hopeful of landing a UFC Welterweight Title shot against pound-for-pound king Islam Makhachev in the New Year.
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