Dan Hardy thinks it’s a shame that headlines surrounding Ian Machado Garry are about his personal life, not his skills.

Garry (13-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) meets Vicente Luque (22-9-1 MMA, 15-5 UFC) in Saturday’s UFC 296 main card opener at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN2 and early prelims on ESPN+.

Undefeated Garry has shined in the octagon so far. Most recently, he had a lopsided win over veteran Neil Magny at UFC 292. But heading into the biggest fight of his career, it’s his character that’s being highlighted, not his skills.

“Honestly, I feel bad for the kid,” Hardy told Submission Radio. “He’s a good fighter, and that’s been overshadowed by all of the drama in and around his personal life. Any interaction I’ve had with him was always good. I saw him several times at Cage Warriors. I called a couple of his fights. He’s a very skilled and talented fighter. He had great coaches back in the day that really instilled a good skill set into him.

“But there was a point in his career where things started to go south, and they went south very quickly from what I can tell from people around him that I’ve spoken to. It just seems like his life was being guided by other people, which is a real shame because for a young man with so much potential, I feel like his potential is being undermined by the drama that’s being created around him.”

Garry’s antics, which included accusing former opponent Neil Magny of being a child abuser as well as posting Geoff Neal’s mugshot on his shirt, have rubbed people the wrong way. Hardy suggests “The Future” is likely being misguided.

“I don’t think he’s a mean person, necessarily,” Hardy said. “I don’t think he’s vindictive in any way. I think some of the things he says are not very well thought out. Some of the things he does are potentially put in his mind or on his shirt by other people, you could say.

“I feel sorry for him and I feel like his potential is being stifled because of this unnecessary drama around him of other people trying to steal the limelight, or create a limelight for themselves. I feel like it’s a lot of weight going into this weekend’s fight against Vicente Luque, who as we know is a very tough and skilled individual.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 296.