5 Things You Might Not Know About Rory MacDonald

Reigning Bellator MMA welterweight champion Rory MacDonald will move to 185 pounds to challenge middleweight titleholder Gegard Mousasi in the Bellator 206 main event on Saturday at the SAP Center in San Jose, California. As MacDonald prepare for his champion-versus-champion superfight, here are five things you might not know about him:

1. He became interested in MMA at a young age.

MacDonald has stated in interviews that he used to watch Ultimate Fighting Championship videos with his father and brother when he was a child growing up in Canada. He would then practice the striking techniques he had witnessed on the heavy bags in his yard. At age 14, MacDonald started his formal MMA training at the Toshido Fighting Arts Academy in Kelowna, British Columbia. He remained with the team until he moved to the Tristar Gym in Montreal following a 2010 defeat to Carlos Condit at UFC 115. “I came to Montreal to seek greatness,” MacDonald said.

2. He is an introvert.

MacDonald’s demeanor, absence of visible emotion and sartorial tastes have led some in the media to dub him “The Canadian Psycho.” While the label may not be a true reflection of MacDonald’s personality, there is no doubt that the uncharismatic combatant is far more comfortable in the cage than he is in front of the microphone. Outside of MMA, MacDonald’s hobbies include bitcoin trading.

3. He is a focused and determined individual.

MacDonald is a hard-working perfectionist who finds inspiration in achieving his goals. Those attributes have led him to upshift in weight to face Mousasi for the Bellator middleweight crown. After his match with Mousasi, MacDonald will return to 170 pounds to battle Jon Fitch in the opening round of Bellator’s welterweight grand prix. He has indicated that he welcomes the demanding schedule. There can be no better evidence of the Canadian’s doggedness than his grueling back-and-forth confrontation with Robbie Lawler at UFC 189, where the two men earned “Fight of the Night” and “Fight of the Year” honors and a visibly disappointed MacDonald succumbed to blows in the fifth round. More recently, MacDonald sustained a number of injuries -- including a gruesome hematoma on his shin -- in his Bellator 192 clash with Douglas Lima, yet he refused to quit and was awarded the decision.

4. He made his MMA debut as a teenager.

“The Red King” first appeared as a professional mixed martial artist at Extreme Fighting Challenge 4 in October 2005; he was 16 at the time. MacDonald vanquished Terry Thiara with a first-round rear-naked choke in what was the first of three consecutive rear-naked choke finishes for the Canadian prodigy. MacDonald won his first 10 fights, all by stoppage, before signing with the Ultimate Fighting Championship at 20 years of age.

5. He boasts a lengthy list of accolades.

While becoming Bellator welterweight champion stands as MacDonald’s most impressive accomplishment to date, there are others that are worth noting. The former King of the Cage lightweight titleholder achieved “Fight of the Night” honors three times in his 12 UFC appearances and banked a “Performance of the Night” bonus in his technical knockout victory over Tarec Saffiedine at UFC Fight Night 54.