Rory’s wife, Olivia, posted a message on social media informing her of her husband’s retirement. “So many emotions today. Please be kind with your words. It’s been a wonderful journey watching this man struggle. Rory hung up his gloves and (is) very at peace with it. (Toast) To new beginnings. Thank you,” he wrote.

Rory MacDonald was the biggest Canadian MMA star after Georges St-Pierre. When he made his UFC debut at just 20 years old in January 2010, he was a teammate of the then welterweight champion and was considered his successor. In the business, he won nine out of 12 fights and reached the title fight in 2015, in a rematch against American Robbie Lawler. The fight with “Ruthless” at UFC 189 is considered a modern MMA classic, but it ended with another victory for Lawler, this time by fifth-round knockout.

After suffering his second straight loss in the next fight, against Stephen Thompson, MacDonald terminated his contract with the UFC and decided to sign with its main competitor, Bellator. In the new home, he won the belt by beating Brazilian Douglas Lima at Bellator 192, in January 2018. He then moved up the division to challenge for the middleweight belt, but was defeated by Gegard Mousasi by TKO at the second turn.

Rory would successfully defend the welterweight belt twice before losing the title in a rematch to Douglas Lima in 2019. Again with a bye, he signed with the PFL and played the last two seasons, but has been knocked out in the semi-finals in both, with four losses in the last six bouts. The most recent happened on Saturday, when he was knocked out by Jamaican Dilano Taylor in the first round. He left his gloves in the center of the cage after the loss, a classic sign of retirement in boxing and MMA. His record now has 23 wins, 10 losses and a draw.

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