Rory
MacDonald was one of the Professional Fighters League’s most
high-profile free-agent signings in recent years, but his first
season ended in disappointment.
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That was due in part to a split-decision loss to Gleison
Tibau that ended up being named Sherdog’s “Robbery of the Year”
for 2021. That setback didn’t keep MacDonald out of the postseason,
but his run ended in a surprisingly one-sided decision loss to
eventual champ Ray Cooper
III in the opening round of the playoffs.
For a former Bellator champion and UFC title challenger, it was not
the outcome many expected when he signed with the new organization.
MacDonald is ready to get back to work for the promotion’s upcoming
season, which kicks off when he faces Brett
Cooper at PFL 3 on Friday night at Esports Stadium Arlington in
Arlington, Texas. The evening’s main card airs on ESPN2 and ESPN+
beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.
“It’s a fresh start, clean slate,” MacDonald said during PFL 3
media day. “I’m going to take from last year my disappointments and
learn from them. I’m going out there to fix my errors. I feel like
my work from the offesason is going to pay off, and I have a lot of
confidence going into this year.”
MacDonald spent part of his training camp working at Tristar Gym
with Firas Zahabi and another portion in Austin, Texas, with John
Danaher and UFC veteran Tim Kennedy
at a gym that also includes grappling aces like Gordon Ryan
and Garry
Tonon.
“I moved my training camp around. I feel like it was a great fit
for me,” MacDonald said. “The skills I picked up, I was able to
implement them in my sparring. I’ve just got to carry what I
learned from my training camp into my fight and all will be
well.”
One might expect that MacDonald would be especially focused on
finishing after the scorecards of the Tibau fight, but he claims
the motivation to finish is already there.
“Not because of that situation but I have put in the work to be a
finisher,” MacDonald said. “I feel like I did the right things in
the offseason and I’m coming in at my very best. I’m gonna go out
there looking for a finish.”
Cooper, like MacDonald, has been fighting professionally since he
was a teenager. “Fudoshin” has title experience in Bellator MMA and
Absolute Championship Akhmat and has faced a wide variety of
competition in compiling a 28-15 record over a nearly 17-year
professional tenure.
“Brett’s a tough guy with a lot of experience. I’m sure he’s going
to bring a tough fight,” MacDonald said. “I’m going to go out there
as if it was a championship fight. I think all my fights at this
point in my career have that meaning … I’m going for the finish,
whether it be knockout or submission.”
For MacDonald, it’s more about his own improvements that the
opponent across from him. He believes his hard work will pay off in
a positive fashion beginning on Friday night.
“The year was a bit disappointing for me, it didn’t go the way I
expected,” he said. “I learned from my choices and I did my very
best to fix those problems during the offseason. I feel like I did
the right things and I feel my best. I feel very confident going
into this year.”