Report: Bellator Has Begun Talks With Free Agent Rory MacDonald

A few months back, former UFC welterweight title challenger Rory “Red King” MacDonald, a man who has loomed atop the promotion’s 170-pound division for years now, made it clear that he was interested in testing free agency after fighting out the last fight on his contract in hopes of finding the best deal possible.

Well, that last fight has come and gone, and it didn’t end particularly well for MacDonald, as the Canadian dropped a very one-sided decision to surging contender Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson last month in Ottawa.

Now, the 26-year-old MacDonald is free to test the free agency waters and according to a tweet from MMAJunkie’s Chamatkar Sandhu, the “Red King” has already received interest from Bellator President Scott Coker:

Bellator President Scott Coker told me they have begun a line of communication with Rory MacDonald in the hopes of signing the free agent.

— Chamatkar Sandhu (@SandhuMMA) July 14, 2016

We have seen multiple former UFC fighters jump ship and head to Bellator in recent memory including veterans Josh Koscheck and Josh Thomson as well as former lightweight champion Benson Henderson.

Prior to his loss to “Wonderboy” MacDonald had won three of his last four with the only loss in that stretch coming in a five round war for the ages against reigning UFC king Robbie Lawler in July 2015. Those three victories came opposite the likes of Demian Maia, current title challenger Tyron Woodley, and Tarec Saffiedine. MacDonald also owns wins over Nate Diaz, B.J Penn, and Jake Ellenberger.

Already an established star at the young age of 26, MacDonald undoubtedly has room to grow, and obviously has a long career ahead of him. Do you see Bellator luring in the “Red King”, or will MacDonald remain with the world’s largest mixed martial arts organization?