After failed negotiations with UFC, Rory MacDonald expects to become free agent

Rory MacDonald has been stuck on the sidelines since July, when he competed opposite UFC welterweight champion Robbie Lawler in one of the greatest fights of the sport's young history. However that inactivity hasn't been by choice.

MacDonald revealed Monday on The MMA Hour that his time on the shelf has been the result of a lengthy -- and ultimately failed -- negotiation period with the UFC, as his upcoming June 18 bout against Stephen Thompson represents the last fight of his current UFC contract. And with talks having reached a standstill, "The Red King" made his intentions clear: one of the world's best welterweights is "very willing" to test the free agency waters once his contract ends after UFC Fight Night 89.




"I want to make the most money I can. I want to get paid for what I bring to the table," MacDonald said. "I've sacrificed a lot to get to the top, to the world title. I really sacrificed, and I took a lot of chances. I did a lot of favors, I felt like, for the UFC and I don't think it got returned. So now it's all about making money, and whoever wants to pay me the most is where I'll go."

MacDonald, 26, is the latest and perhaps most intriguing UFC star yet to express an interest in testing his value on the open market, attaching his name to a recent trend that has seen several others -- from Benson Henderson to Alistair Overeem to Matt Mitrione -- eschew early renegotiations with the UFC to instead roll the dice and bet on themselves in free agency.

MacDonald said his focus shifted towards the financials in the aftermath of his rematch with Lawler at UFC 189. Despite sustaining heavy damage competing in an all-time great fight on one of 2015's biggest pay-per-views, MacDonald earned a disclosed salary of $59,000 against Lawler, making him only the sixth-highest paid fighter of the card.

"The experience itself, the fight was great. I loved it. It was a great thing for me and my martial arts career," MacDonald said. "But, you know, a performance like that and everything I did leading up to it in my career with the UFC, I feel like I should be left a little bit more financially stable. I still make good money, but I still feel that I was worth more. That I brought more to the table than what I really got.

"So I just have to really fight for what is right, on the business side now. And I guess getting to that point, to the world title and stuff, after a hard fight like that, it just opened my eyes to it. Okay, now it's time to get a little more business savvy rather than just do whatever just to get to the big fight."




MacDonald first joined the UFC in 2010 as a 20-year-old Canadian prospect with a name to watch. Since that time he has racked up a 9-3 record while establishing himself as one of the best welterweights in the world, besting the likes of Tyron Woodley, Nate Diaz, and Demian Maia, among many others. Even against Lawler, MacDonald led on all three judges' scorecards until a fifth-round assault cut short his shot at the title.

Through it all, MacDonald said he tried his best to be a company man by never turning down a fight and always fulfilling his promotional obligations with professionalism.

Yet the road to fighting out his contract has been frustrating in more ways than one, as MacDonald originally agreed to fight Hector Lombard at a UFC Fight Night 84 bout in London that never came to fruition.

"I'll tell you exactly what happened," MacDonald said "We'd been in negotiations with my new contract since my last fight, but they'd offered me to fight Hector next, so I said definitely, let's do it. So I think they booked me for the last London card there, and I was like, no problem, let's get it. Right about when I was going to start training camp, they said, ‘okay, we don't feel that you're ready because you haven't started sparring yet.' But I never told them that I was not ready or I wasn't healthy with my nose or whatever. Like, they just asked me if I had started sparring. I said no, I was going to wait until training camp started to get back into it. And they were like, ‘okay, we're to postpone it until the Australia card.'

"It was like, well, I want to fight in London. I don't want to be flying that far to go fight this guy. So I was like, I'll tell you what, I'll fight in Australia, but give me my new contract. They apparently weren't willing to do that because the next thing that happened was they booked him (Lombard) with Neil Magny.

"I'm not fighting over there for $50,000," MacDonald continued. "I'll fight in London or somewhere a little closer, or in North America, but that's a longass way to make a little money."

Ultimately, the situation worked itself out, as MacDonald landed Thompson as a new opponent in nearby Ottawa, Ontario. MacDonald considers the fight to be a tougher proposition than the Lombard fight, but also one that "does more" for his career, and he is willing to gamble on himself if it leads to a bigger payday in the end.

With his first child -- a baby girl -- set to arrive in July, MacDonald understands better than ever before that his window to capitalize in the fight game is short. He remains the UFC's most viable shot to recapture a drifting Canadian market, and while he obviously still has goals he wants to accomplish inside the Octagon, his main priorities have shifted towards securing a better future for his family -- and that all starts on June 18.

"I'd rather not go through it (free agency). I mean, I'd rather just agree on something with the UFC and move forward," MacDonald said. "But we'll see what happens. I'm very willing to do it though, if that means making more money.

"My gut tells me... I don't know," MacDonald finished. "I don't even know any more. I'm just going to do what I have to do, what I can control. I'm going to go in there and try to have the best performance of my life, and then my job is done."


http://www.mmafighting.com/2016/3/14/11224612/rory-macdonald-very-willing-to-test-free-agency-after-next-fight

I don't know if I buy this..
I hope that rory is just trying to land a mega contract that I feel he deserves.
50k for a title fight is ridiculous and I feel that he should have a minimum 100k/100k

I'm pretty sure bellator, wsof, and onefc eyes lit up when they read this lol

coker is probably at rorys door step right now with a blank check and a bellator shirt

Meh I like MacDonald but if you win and win decisively you get to write your own ticket. If you win five fights out of the last 10 by decision and have two losses in that group you really aren't the big name money earner you think you are. Hype is nice but brain blasting KO's are what gets you the paydays.

Despite the hype I don't see fans flocking to see Rory as the head liner of a ppv.

what rory macdonald are you talking about?

he only lost to lawler and condit and all fights were absolute wars.
at 26 the kid has probably the most promising future in mma with any org.

He would be a great addition to the Bellator roster... he would obviously be deserving of an immediate title shot IMO
Viacom has the $$ to throw his way to get him, on top of more $$$ from multiple sponsor payouts... it would only make sense to test the waters.

drainbamage wrote:

what rory macdonald are you talking about?  

he only lost to lawler and condit and all fights were absolute wars.
at 26 the kid has probably the most promising future in mma with any org.

I think he meant 5 out of 10 wins were dcisions. He did mention that there were two losses, but was illustrating that his wins weren't exactly legendary.

I don't put too much stock into the fact that he got 50k for that fight. He had the contract that he had going into the fight. It's not like he didn't know what he signed. I'm sure he got paid a lot more money than some of his less than stellar fights were worth in those instances, so it all evens out in the end.

Sounds to me like he doesn't really want to hit the market, but rather, wants the UFC to just pay him a little better.
I don't blame him. I hope they pay him a little more, but don't treat him like a king (Red or otherwise).

Triggerman99 wrote:

drainbamage wrote:

what rory macdonald are you talking about?  

he only lost to lawler and condit and all fights were absolute wars.
at 26 the kid has probably the most promising future in mma with any org.

I think he meant 5 out of 10 wins were dcisions. He did mention that there were two losses, but was illustrating that his wins weren't exactly legendary.

I don't put too much stock into the fact that he got 50k for that fight. He had the contract that he had going into the fight. It's not like he didn't know what he signed. I'm sure he got paid a lot more money than some of his less than stellar fights were worth in those instances, so it all evens out in the end.

Sounds to me like he doesn't really want to hit the market, but rather, wants the UFC to just pay him a little better.
I don't blame him. I hope they pay him a little more, but don't treat him like a king (Red or otherwise).

apparently I forgot how to read hahaha. my bad kreiger!! maybe I'm wrong but I feel like all of his fights have been pretty exciting and I cant recall a really dud of a fight he had. someone help me out here?? maybe I'm just forgetting

Yeah I know what you're saying ... and I like Rory ... but somehow, for me, he never quite hits that level of being a headliner. Its the "new young gun" "the future of the ufc" hype that he has never quite reached reality level for me. Just my opinion but there it is.... Oh yeah ... he's a freaking TriStar Canadian, GSP trained fighter and he should be right near the top of my list... but he's just not there.

the more I think of it the more I agree with you. I actually went back and watched some of his fights and in some of them he is a savage but its always like he almost hit the homerun but it went foul at the very last second. I never recognized his lack of finishing fights and to be elite I feel you need to finish fights. especially the big fights that you are signed for.