MMA Champ Says God Is Calling to Him, Doesn't Want To Inflict 'Pain and Suffering' Anymore
Mixed martial arts is, by its nature, a violent business. For people of a certain moral persuasion, it can be difficult to reconcile the nature of the sport with a drive to live a life of kindness outside of the ring.
For Rory MacDonald, that moral dissonance finally caught up with him as he contemplated his choices following a draw against Jon Fitch on Saturday night at Bellator 220 in San Jose.
ESPN’s Ariel Helwani captured MacDonald’s emotional state following the fight.
“It’s hard to pull the trigger. I don’t have that killer instinct. It’s hard to explain. … It takes a certain spirit to come in here and put a man through pain, and I don’t know if I have that same drive to hurt people anymore.”
– Rory MacDonald after tonight’s majority draw.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) April 28, 2019
MacDonald invoked a religious calling in explaining why a man who has at points been among the elite of the entire sport, including an extended run in the UFC, seems to have lost the eye of the tiger.
MacDonald: I feel like God has called me for a while. It’s hard to put another man through pain and suffering. I don’t know what it is. It’s confusing. I know the Lord has something in store for me, he was speaking to me in here tonight. #Bellator220
— Marc Raimondi (@marc_raimondi) April 28, 2019
MacDonald’s post-fight interview was raw and personal and set the Internet on fire — some saying unkind things and others wishing him well — but whatever your opinion on the champion’s choice, it sure evoked a lot of discussion:
.@Rory_MacDonald‘s post-fight interview. #Bellator220
“I don’t know if I have that same drive to hurt people anymore.” pic.twitter.com/6Iosk6RPID
— DAZN USA (@DAZN_USA) April 28, 2019
Macdonald has been fighting since he was 16 years old. He made his pro debut 14 years ago. The man gave the entirety of his late adolescence and early adulthood to violence, and if he wants to invoke a religious purpose, then all the folks on Twitter saying he’s shot and doesn’t have it anymore will just have to accept it.
But when MacDonald did have that drive to inflict pain, few in the history of the sport ever did it better.
MacDonald’s second fight with Robbie Lawler was one of the most brutal fights in the history of mixed martial arts, the furthest thing in the world from MacDonald’s current status as a budding pacifist. The highlight reel for that fight looks less like a match with fists and feet and more like a knife fight.
Warning: Those of squeamish temperament are advised that this fight featured a ton of graphic bloody images.
That was MacDonald’s brand in MMA, whether it was UFC or Bellator or anywhere else. The guy was a fan favorite and a champion precisely because of his commitment to bringing more pain than the other guy could handle while being willing to walk through the gates of hell if it meant he would be the last man standing.
The draw against Fitch means that MacDonald, if he is indeed done with MMA, gets to retire as champion; he was the belt-holder and Fitch the challenger in Saturday’s fight, meaning MacDonald keeps the title on a draw.
One thing that is undisputable, though, is that fans will miss what could have been a real treat of a fight if MacDonald’s retirement means he doesn’t get the anticipated fight with Neiman Gracie.
But whether it’s sincere religious conviction, losing the spark or another reason, that’s not Rory MacDonald’s problem anymore.
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