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Interview with Rory Macdonald
Hey guys,
I did an interview with Rory Macdonald a few weeks ago. Don't know if any of you saw it, but I thought I'd post it on the site for you to all to check out.
Rory Macdonald is one of the UFC’s top prospects. Considering he’s only 21 and gave Carlos Condit, a former WEC title holder a fantastic fight, until being stopped in the last seconds of the final round of their fight, he gained a new following with a gutsy non-stop action performance. MMA UK spoke to Rory before his fight against Nick Diaz at UFC 129…
How’s the training going for your upcoming fight with Nate Diaz at UFC 129?
It’s going really well. Definitely going as planned. I couldn’t really ask for anything better.
How excited are you to be fighting in your home country, at the biggest UFC card in history?
I love fighting in Canada. I don’t have to deal with crossing the border and I’ve got the home crowd advantage. It’s nice and I’m really excited because I love fighting here.
You suffered your first loss against Carlos Condit, but a lot of fighters say they learn more from a loss than they do a win. What did you learn from that loss?
I definitely learned a lot from that fight than any other. I learned that I need to stay more composed during fights and change up my game plan when I fight. A lot of my technique needed to change and that’s going to show in my next fight.
I gained a lot of maturity from that fight with it being pretty much a whole three round fight. With it being my first loss, it changed the way I look at fighting. It really showed me that when I step in there, the other guy is really trying to hurt me. Before that, it never really hurt. I’ve always been pretty dominant in my fights and never had to suffer that type of punishment before.
It changed a lot of things man. It was a big motivation.
So how did you get into MMA?
I started when I was 14. I used to get into trouble when I was younger, started to do some bad things and was in that rebellious stage and I stumbled across Bushido MMA, which has been my home until last August when I made the move too Montreal.
I found that gym and it got me back on track and gave me something to be positive about and I fell in love with it right away. It took over my life and here we are today.
What’s it like training at Zahabi’s MMA ( Editor’s Note: For those that don’t know ZahabiMMA is where the likes of GSP, Dennis Kang train in Canada)
Everything! Firas is my head coach now and he’s taken me under his wing. We’ve got George here, Dennis Kang. All my coaches from Jon Chaimberg to Howard Grant. They’ve got a wrestling club, all my wrestling coaches are great. It’s an awesome place and I love it here.
What’s it like training with veterans such as Georges St Pierre and Dennis Kang. How much do you take from them as a young fighter?
It’s not only training with them. It’s being friends with them, talking to them, them teaching me things that I need to look at in my career. As far as things in the gym, it’s amazing. These guys have been around the block and I’ve watched them since I first started.
It’s a blessing that I can be beside these guys every day, learning from them and working with them.
You’ve obviously got a fight with Nate Diaz on April 30th. What do you feel are his weaknesses?
He’s a very strong fighter all-around, but I feel like I’ll be able to expose some things that I might be stronger at and I really feel that it’ll be a good fight.
We’re near the end of the first quarter of 2011. How many fights are you looking to have this year and where do you see Rory Macdonald at the end of 2011?
I want to stay healthy and stay busy. I’m just going to take this fight right now and see how things go after that. If I could have three or four fights by the end of this year I’d be so happy, but all I’m focusing on is this one right now.
It’s really strange in the welterweight division at the moment, because if you beat 2 or 3 fighters, you’re right at the top. How many fights do you see yourself needing to win before your fighting the elite guys?
I think that’s mainly because of the way that George has dominated the division for so long. He has beaten everybody, you know. He’s beaten all the best guys and you can’t just beating all the same guys because it gets a little boring, so I think it’s little bit easier to get to the title shot now.
It’s the same with the middleweight division with Anderson Silva. I think right now, what I lack in the Top 10 in the UFC is my experience. I think that showed in my last fight against Carlos, where I feel like I was the better fighter, but my experience got me caught, and that’s something I’m going to need if I’m going to be a champion in the future.
So right now I’m going to keep pumping out fights, keep winning and keep learning.
Thanks for your time Rory. Is there anyone you’d like to thank?
I’d like to thank everyone here in Montreal, they’ve helped me so much. There is a list of names that just go on and on. I appreciate all the help that I’ve got from everybody.
Was just wondering...who do youthink wins at UFC 129 between these two and should it have been on the main card instead of Matyushenko and Jason Brilz. Personally, I think this is a more exciting fight thana Matyushenk and Brilz and would've made sense considering Macdonald is Canadian.
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Interview with Rory Macdonald
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