Rory MacDonald says UFC wasn’t ‘respectful’ in handling of Reebok deal: ‘There was no discussion’

Rory MacDonald has long been one of the best welterweights in the world, but after spending seven years under the UFC umbrella, his career ventured down a new path on Friday when MacDonald inked an exclusive six-fight deal with Bellator MMA, in the process becoming the biggest free agent to leave the UFC in years. And although the 27-year-old Canadian has only been part of the Bellator family for a few days, he is encouraged by his initial interactions with Bellator president Scott Coker and the crew at Viacom, compared to what MacDonald is used to hearing from the UFC.

“They’re straight-up guys,” MacDonald said Monday on The MMA Hour. “They’re easy to talk to, they’re approachable, and they have their ears open. They don’t just have their plan and tell the fighters to just do what they want. They want to hear what the fighters want to do.

“They want to be creative, do something new. They don’t want to just push their agenda, so to say. They want to listen and be partners almost, do this together and build something unique. So even though it’s new, it’s already been awesome. I’ve talked to the head guys over at Bellator and Spike in one day more than I have in a whole seven years with the UFC.”

MacDonald debuted in the UFC as a 20-year-old prodigy in 2010 and quickly established himself as a name to watch in the welterweight division, racking up a 9-2 record with victories over the likes of Nate Diaz, Demian Maia, and current UFC champion Tyron Woodley. That run culminated in a title shot against Robbie Lawler at UFC 189, and although MacDonald lost a grueling war of attrition that many observers consider to be one of the greatest fights in mixed martial arts history, the experience prompted a shift in the way he looked at the fight game.

MacDonald earned a disclosed salary of $59,000 to fight Lawler, low numbers that MacDonald admitted opened his eyes for his need to get paid what he is worth. That realization ultimately led to “The Red King” inking a free agency deal with Bellator MMA, and now that his time in the Octagon is behind him, MacDonald pointed to the UFC-Reebok …

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