Rory MacDonald Targeting December Return To Action
Rory MacDonald recently took part in arguably the greatest mixed martial arts (MMA) fight of all-time when he met welterweight king “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler at July 11’s UFC 189 from Las Vegas, Nevada.
It was a gruesome, and bloody affair that saw each man have his moments. The two battled back and forth each looking deformed by the end of it. Lawler ultimately came out on top with a fifth-round TKO victory, and although the “Red King” suffered a broken foot, as well as a broken nose, he recently said that the fight was the greatest moment of his life.
Despite losing the bout, MacDonald’s stock definitely did not go down, and at just 25-years-old, the Canadian superstar still has a lengthy future ahead of him. As far as his immediate future, MacDonald told Ariel Helwani (Via The Score) that he’s targeting a December return to action.
The “Red King” said that his nose still has to heal, but that he’ll probably have a fight booked within the next month or six weeks:
“December,” he said.
“My nose is still broken so I kind of have to wait until that heals so I can test it in sparing, then spar for a little bit, get comfortable sparing, getting it punched again and when that’s all good, I’ll probably book a fight within two months or six weeks.”
As for who may be next in line for MacDonald, it’s kind of difficult to speculate as most of the top 170-pounders are currently booked. No. 1-ranked Johny Hendricks is scheduled to meet No. 3-ranked Tyron Woodley, while No. 4 Carlos Condit is slated to meet Lawler. Also, No. 5 Matt Brown has signed on to meet Kelvin Gastelum.
It seems as if MacDonald isn’t too worried, stating that he’ll fight anyone who’s relevant and that he hasn’t fought before, and if he has to, he’ll take a rematch with someone inside of the top 10:
“Someone that I haven’t fought who’s relevant and is a good fighter. I’m good with anything, you know,” he said. “I’d like to fight someone I haven’t fought before that’s good, but if that’s not possible definitely a rematch with someone in the top 10.”
Who should the “Red King” meet upon his return?
