Rory MacDonald (fighter)

Rory Joseph MacDonald (born July 22, 1989) is a Canadian mixed martial artist who recently signed a contract with Bellator MMA.He is a former King of the Cage Lightweight Champion. He is also a former UFC top contender who competed in the company's Welterweight division, obtaining an overall record of 9-4 with the promotion.

MacDonald is of Scottish, Irish and Norwegian descent. He started his training with David Lea at the age of 14 and his fight team Toshido Fighting Arts Academy out of Kelowna, B.C. He moved to Montreal and joined Tristar Gym, home of former UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St-Pierre, after his loss to Carlos Condit.

MacDonald made his professional debut at the age of sixteen, winning against Terry Thiara, at an Extreme Fighting Challenge event.

King of the Cage

He then moved to 2–0, by beating Ken Tran in his King of the Cage (KOTC) debut. He won a fight in Rumble in the Cage and then signed exclusively with King of the Cage. He won two fights after signing and was then rewarded with a shot at the KOTC Canadian Lightweight title, against Kajan Johnson, which MacDonald won. MacDonald then was awarded a shot at the King of the Cage Lightweight Championship, against Clay French, MacDonald knocked him out in the second round. After the fight MacDonald moved up to welterweight and successfully defeated Elmer Waterhen by first round armbar.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

MacDonald was signed to the UFC after compiling a 9–0 professional record.

He debuted for the promotion at UFC Fight Night 20 against Mike Guymon.Guymon dropped MacDonald with a right cross, before MacDonald quickly recovered, took Guymon down and won the fight with an armbar submission in the first round.

MacDonald lost to Carlos Condit via third-round TKO at UFC 115 in a bout that earned the Fight of the Night award. MacDonald was competitive in the first two rounds using effective striking and taking Condit down three times. Condit came back with a more aggressive attitude in the final round and finished MacDonald with a combination of elbows and punches. After the fight, the judges' scorecards were revealed and showed that had MacDonald not been finished in the last seven seconds, he would have picked up a split decision victory.

MacDonald was expected to face Matt Brown on November 20, 2010 at UFC 123, but was forced from the card with an injury and replaced by Brian Foster.

MacDonald was expected to face James Wilks on April 30, 2011 at UFC 129. However, Wilks was replaced on the card by Nate Diaz. MacDonald dominated Diaz during all three rounds (throwing Diaz by German Suplex three times in the third round), earning a unanimous decision victory.

MacDonald defeated Mike Pyle by TKO in the first round via ground and pound on August 6, 2011 at UFC 133.

MacDonald was expected to face Brian Ebersole on December 10, 2011 at UFC 140. However, MacDonald pulled out of the bout with an injury and was replaced by Claude Patrick.

MacDonald beat Che Mills via second-round TKO on April 21, 2012 at UFC 145. After getting hit with hard shots in the first round, MacDonald took the fight to the ground, where he controlled the fight with his superior wrestling and ground and pound.

MacDonald was expected to face BJ Penn on September 22, 2012 at UFC 152. However, MacDonald pulled out of the bout after sustaining a cut to the forehead while training. The fight eventually took place on December 8, 2012 at UFC on Fox 5. MacDonald dominated Penn for three rounds and won by unanimous decision.

MacDonald was expected to face Carlos Condit in a rematch on March 16, 2013 at UFC 158. However, MacDonald pulled out of the bout citing another injury, and was replaced by Johny Hendricks.

MacDonald defeated Jake Ellenberger by unanimous decision on July 27, 2013, at UFC on Fox 8. He used his size and reach advantage to repeatedly land his jab, neutralizing the shorter Ellenberger. UFC president Dana White criticized the performance as "lackluster".

MacDonald next lost a split decision to Robbie Lawler at UFC 167.

MacDonald beat Demian Maia by unanimous decision on February 22, 2014 at UFC 170, earning his second Fight of the Night bonus award. MacDonald almost had to pull out of this fight after stabbing himself in the hand while cutting an avocado.

MacDonald defeated Tyron Woodley by unanimous decision in the co-main event of UFC 174 in June, 2014.

MacDonald scored a third-round TKO on Tarec Saffiedine on October 4, 2014 at UFC Fight Night 54. This earned his first Performance of the Night bonus award.

MacDonald was expected to face Hector Lombard on April 25, 2015 at UFC 186. However, on February 10, the UFC indicated that both participants had been removed from the card and that the pairing had been scrapped as both fighters are expected to be rebooked against a new opponent.

A rematch with former champion Robbie Lawler took place on July 11, 2015 at UFC 189. MacDonald lost the fight via TKO in the fifth round. The back and forth action earned both participants Fight of the Night honors. The fight was considered an instant classic by fans and media alike with UFC President Dana White hailing it as one of the best welterweight fights in the promotion's history.

MacDonald next faced Stephen Thompson on June 18, 2016 at UFC Fight Night 89. He lost the one sided fight via unanimous decision (50–45, 50–45, and 48–47).

Bellator MMA

On August 26, 2016, MacDonald signed a contract with Bellator MMA. He subsequently appeared at Bellator 160 and announced his intentions to win both the welterweight and middleweight championships.

On November 22, 2014, MacDonald fought to a draw against Jonathan Torres in a grappling match in Metamoris V.

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • Fight of the Night (Three times)
  • Performance of the Night (One time)
• King of the Cage
  • KOTC Lightweight Championship (One time)
  • KOTC Canadian Lightweight Championship (One time)
• Top MMA News
  • Canadian Fighter of the Year (2012)
• MMAJunkie.com
  • 2014 February Fight of the Month vs. Demian Maia
  • 2015 July Fight of the Month vs. Robbie Lawler
• Bleacher Report
  • 2015 Fight of the Year vs. Robbie Lawler at UFC 189
• Wrestling Observer Newsletter
  • MMA Match of the Year (2015) vs. Robbie Lawler at UFC 189

• "Best of Canada 2012: Fighter of the Year". TopMMANews.com. Retrieved 2013-02-25. 
• http://mmajunkie.com/2014/03/mmajunkies-fight-of-the-month-for-february-2014
• http://mmajunkie.com/2015/08/mmajunkies-fight-of-the-month-for-july-is-dana-whites-fight-of-the-ever
• http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2601080-bleacher-report-mma-awards-2015s-best-fighter-fight-finishes-and-moment/page/5
• Meltzer, Dave (January 25, 2016). "January 25, 2016 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: 2015 Observer Awards Issue". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Campbell, California: 29. ISSN 1083-9593.