Sherdog’s Top 10: Phenoms

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9. Rory MacDonald

If Chris Weidman’s phenom status is determined by the rapidity of his rise to the top, MacDonald’s is defined by his extreme youth. The British Columbia native walked into an MMA gym at age 14 and had his first professional fight at 16. By age 20, he was already a grizzled and experienced professional with wins over the likes of Kajan Johnson and Jordan Mein.

MacDonald entered the UFC before he could legally buy a beer in the United States and submitted his first opponent, Michael Guymon, with alacrity. In a puzzling move, he drew the experienced, skilled and ultra-violent Carlos Condit in his second outing and was on his way to a decision victory when he faded late in the third round and was finished by strikes. MacDonald took a slower path to the top from that point, defeating Mike Pyle, Che Mills and then a past-his-prime B.J. Penn to stake his claim as a top welterweight.

MacDonald is poised to rematch Robbie Lawler for the UFC welterweight title at UFC 189. It seems like a long time coming, but it is easy to forget that the Canadian is still only 25 years old, with some of the best years of his career ahead of him. We have yet to see how good MacDonald can truly become.

Number 8 » Now 28, he is still in his prime, is undoubtedly the greatest featherweight in MMA history and might just be the best fighter on the planet.