Back On Track After UFC 170, Rory MacDonald Nearly Missed Demian Maia Bout With Strange Injury
No. 4-ranked UFC welterweight Rory MacDonald got back into the win column with an impressive come-from-behind victory over No. 6 Demian Maia (watch the highlights here) at last night’s UFC 170 pay-per-view event from Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The big win should give “Ares” a new path towards title contention after a lackluster 2013 that saw him win a boring decision over Jake Ellenberger and lose a split decision to current title challenger “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler.
However, the fight against Brazilian jiu-jitsu wizard Maia almost didn’t happen. At last night’s post-fight press conference, MacDonald said he stabbed himself while slicing an avocado, an injury that nearly kept him out of UFC 170 altogether:
“I stabbed myself. It was pretty embarrassing. I couldn’t believe it. I thought I was going to have to pull out of the fight because you could easily hit a tendon. I went to the emergency room, got stitched up, got checked out. Everything’s fine and intact. It went in really far. But it got stitched up, I fought, and everything’s cool.”
MacDonald has been forced out a fight with a cut before. His UFC 152 bout with BJ Penn moved to UFC on FOX 5 in late 2012. It may have been a nerve-wracking situation, but ultimately “Ares” showed up in fighting shape and utilized his reach and striking to nail Maia with a ton of varied shots.
He’s apparently re-found his fire after admitting he had lost it last year.
With talk of him potentially facing friend and mentor Georges St. Pierre on the shelf for the time being, MacDonald has a refreshed focus and a clear mind. As the UFC 170-pound division’s heir apparent, MacDonald has been hounded with talk about fighting “GSP” for several years.
With the belt vacant after St. Pierre stepped down after the drama of UFC 167, that’s no longer an issue.
The welterweight title picture will get sorted out at next month’s UFC 171 from Dallas, Texas, and MacDonald could potentially find himself matched up against the winner of the evening’s Carlos Condit vs. Tyron Woodley co-main event, or he may even fight the winner of Hector Lombard vs. Jake Shields, also at UFC 171.
With a big fight on the horizon, “Ares” could fight himself back in title contention before the end of the year. Is now the time we see MacDonald begin to realize his immense potential?
Photo: Stephen R. Sylvanie for USA TODAY Sports
