Former Bellator Welterweight Champion and UFC veteran Rory ‘The Red King’ MacDonald has signed with the Professional Fighters League. He’s the highest-profile signing the PFL has had to date. MacDonald is set to take part in the 2020 season, in the race for the one million dollar prize and championship.
2019 has not been a kind year to the former Bellator champion as he drew with fellow UFC veteran Jon Fitch earlier in the year and announced he was beginning to question his love for fighting. Rebounding with a win over Neiman Gracie, ‘The Red King’ closed out his 2019 losing a unanimous decision to Douglas Lima to lose his crown and a shot at one million dollars in Bellator’s own Grand Prix. With the move coming not long after his recent loss, many fans may wonder why he’s making the promotional jump.
A welterweight standout from his early career in the big show, MacDonald came up short in his unforgettable title fight to former UFC champion Robbie ‘Ruthless’ Lawler. His Bellator run has been an overall mixed bag for MacDonald, with wins over Paul Daley, Neiman Gracie and Douglas Lima. He has lost to former Bellator, Strikeforce, and DREAM champion Gegard Mousasi in his bid to become a double champion. He followed that with a draw to Fitch and a loss to Bellator welterweight great Douglas Lima.
The Future for Rory MacDonald
After losing the shot at closing his career on a life-changing payday and a reigning champion, it is likely that MacDonald has made this move with this in mind. Having kept no secret from fans about what he wishes to do once he hangs up the gloves. The former champion will certainly be looking to close his career on that, with a 1 million dollar check and championship gold to accompany.
How Does this Benefit PFL?
What does this mean for the PFL? Having multiple celebrity investors, such as Kevin Hart and others, has allowed the company to invest in multiple Grand Prix. With the additional signing of MacDonald, along with Dana White’s Contender Series vet Brendan Loughnane. It seems that PFL are really starting to put themselves in the discussion of being a major player in the MMA world.
Our Conclusion
Overall, it would seem that both Rory’s and the PFL’s interests align here. Rory has a second chance to have the fairy tale end to a storied career that not many have. The PFL have an opportunity to pull more eyes to their content further expanding their growth.
I believe 2020 will be a great year for PFL fans. With Rory MacDonald set to enter into the regular season, it is sure to spark many great fights.
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