Sherdog’s Top 10: Canadian Mixed Martial Artists

2. Rory MacDonald

By the time MacDonald reached the UFC in June 2010, expectations were high. He was 9-0 with nine finishes and had captured two King of the Cage championships, all by age 20. His Octagon debut at UFC “Maynard vs. Diaz” did nothing to calm the hype surrounding him, as he submitted Michael Guymon with a first-round armbar.

From there, MacDonald suffered his first pro defeat at the Hail Mary hands of Carlos Condit but rebounded with five straight victories, as he bested Nate Diaz, Mike Pyle, Che Mills, B.J. Penn and Jake Ellenberger in succession. A split decision loss to Robbie Lawler at UFC 167 on Nov. 16, 2013 was followed by a three-fight winning streak that led to a rematch with Lawler, this time for the Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight crown.

The epic, bloody war between Lawler and MacDonald at UFC 189 was an easy choice for the 2015 “Fight of the Year.” Ahead on the scorecards at the time, MacDonald wilted to punches 60 seconds into the fifth round, his nose having been shattered. He returned to the cage a little less than a year later, only to lose a one-sided unanimous decision to Stephen Thompson in their UFC Fight Night headliner. MacDonald, 27, has since decided to author a new chapter in his career by signing with the Bellator MMA organization.

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