How bad does Dana regret letting Rory go?

[trident]

Rory is a really nice car that ran off a cliff. I dont see him taking Woodley right now. In the same way I wouldn't have favored Condit in a Rory rematch the last few years they were in the UFC together

 

[Kertol]

Yes I did. Rory did not look good is all I'm saying. The top position won him the fight IMO.

Lima is really good.

 

[BenRichards]

Yes I did. Rory did not look good is all I'm saying. The top position won him the fight IMO.

I'd rather leave it as Lima is highly underrated would probably torch most of the UFC ww division. Top position absolutely won him that fight but again after 4 rounds of trading with Lima, his hail Mary lay n pray was all he could do. I respect your opinion though and it's easy to look at it and think he had to lay n pray some bellator guy. I still feel that rory is an absolute warrior and fought arguably one of the top 5 ww's in the world

 

[DetachedOrchid]

I'd rather leave it as Lima is highly underrated would probably torch most of the UFC ww division. Top position absolutely won him that fight but again after 4 rounds of trading with Lima, his hail Mary lay n pray was all he could do. I respect your opinion though and it's easy to look at it and think he had to lay n pray some bellator guy. I still feel that rory is an absolute warrior and fought arguably one of the top 5 ww's in the world

Agreed. Rory's style and well roundedness can stiffle any WW on any given night. Respect deserved.

 

[Bamboozled]

Boring McDonald isn't missed. I watch Bellator and I don't get excited for his fights.

 

[ortizgnp]

Maybe Dana let him go because he demanded unreasonable money.

 

[Siesta]

Right now Dana can't stand having Woodley as champ. The only (active) welterweight that would probably be the favorite over Woodley right now is Rory Macdonald, having dominated Woodley in the not too distant past.

The UFC was very cheap with Rory and his contract. They kind of also wanted to set the standard that if fighters aren't happy with their pay the UFC don't need them (Bader, Phil Davis,etc. were all top 10 fighters). Now it came back to bite them in the ass. Rory is the Bellator champ who is set to face Mousasi in a highly anticipated fight looking to be double champ. Right now UFC needs him more than he needs them.

Dana probably thinks about this every day hahah. Hopefully they offer Rory some big time money to come back.

Dana is too rich to have regrets... It’s not like Rory was Champ.

 

[AJ Garcia]

If you haven’t seen this breakdown of Rory vs woodley you should watch it. It’s insane how good of a game plan Rory followed and how woodley has nothing for it.

 

[mkt]

Right now Dana can't stand having Woodley as champ. The only (active) welterweight that would probably be the favorite over Woodley right now is Rory Macdonald, having dominated Woodley in the not too distant past.

The UFC was very cheap with Rory and his contract. They kind of also wanted to set the standard that if fighters aren't happy with their pay the UFC don't need them (Bader, Phil Davis,etc. were all top 10 fighters). Now it came back to bite them in the ass. Rory is the Bellator champ who is set to face Mousasi in a highly anticipated fight looking to be double champ. Right now UFC needs him more than he needs them.

Dana probably thinks about this every day hahah. Hopefully they offer Rory some big time money to come back.

By far their worst loss. Most other Bellator transfers weren't a big deal, especially Bendo. Bader was probably the second worse loss...though no one knew the LHW would be in shambles back then (no Jones, Rumble and Cormier fighting at HW and retiring soon).

Rory was young, too, in an aging division...even though they may have thought he was damaged goods after his wars with Lawler and Wonderboy. And they may be right. I really don't think fighting a MW (who has fought at LHW) is a good career decision for Rory....

 

[ScoopSubMMA]

I don't completely agree, but it is funny how things looked when he left vs. now. Everyone thought Wonderboy was going to take over, so why keep Rory. If Rory had stayed with the UFC he could have gotten a win or two during the Woodley/Wonderboy snoozefest saga and then challenged Woodley.

 

[Kertol]

By far their worst loss. Most other Bellator transfers weren't a big deal, especially Bendo. Bader was probably the second worse loss...though no one knew the LHW would be in shambles back then (no Jones, Rumble and Cormier fighting at HW and retiring soon).

Rory was young, too, in an aging division...even though they may have thought he was damaged goods after his wars with Lawler and Wonderboy. And they may be right. I really don't think fighting a MW (who has fought at LHW) is a good career decision for Rory....

Yea I agree. Don't think it is a good idea for him to fight Mousasi but gotta respect his courage. A win would be extremely impressive.

 

[mkt]

How about Gegard.He kicks the shit out of weidman, finishes on a 5 fight stoppage streak as he gets to #3 in world and WME shits on the guy during 90 day negotiation period. Day 91 comes and Coker has permission to go after Mousasi......and that he did.I just wish Gegard would 've just stuck around 2 more weeks to give it some thought cause Whitaker literally injured his knee a week after Mousasi left.
He wouldve been involved in interim title fight. The ufc did back peddle and offer him " a somewhat competitive offer " but damage was done and it wasnt matched.
Shame cause Rory and Till big enough to fight at 185 - throw in Gegard who " could be UFC champ" as we speak and ufc middleweight class would be sweet once again.

Machida, Hall and a beatdown everywhere from Jacare happened to Mousasi. One big win (and a few meaningless ones like beating ancient, post-TRT versions of Belfort/Hendo) don't make up for that. He wasn't the world beater his fangirls made him out to be. And yes, I think he'll probably beat Rory, but mostly due to a size and style advantage.

 

[cburm]

Dana white the ultimate ufc promoter ... That doesnt like to say good things or promote ufc fighters... Somehow he cant be fired... Shoulda happened a long time ago. Now because he was trying to demote woodley bash him ect he realizes he shoulda ben doing his actual job.

 

[mkt]

Lima is really good.

Except his TDD, which is really bad. But he's a tough guy to stand with. I'd like to see him vs. Wonderboy, Woodley or Till with a decent fight IQ.

 

[Russie]

I doubt he regrets it. I hated to see Rory go but I think they saw him as a guy who they made their money off of and didn't want to shell out more money to him if it was going to be diminishing return. It was a tough call to make.

 

[cburm]

When your promoter says your a boring fighter and everything you say is a lie.. And then you perform and he gets butt hurt that you did good....
Dana needs a new job shit with his 400 mil and 10 to 20 a year salary he should just retire hes so damn selfish

 

[acannxr]

They kind of also wanted to set the standard that if fighters aren't happy with their pay the UFC don't need them (Bader, Phil Davis,etc. were all top 10 fighters).

They're also trying to fight a monopoly lawsuit; letting some top ten fighters go helps them in court.

 

[jsbx45]

No, Rory was hard to market. Personality of a peanut.

And Woodley isn"t? Dana IS going to have to step up and start marketing Woodley though, because he keeps on winning, and that IS marketable.

 

[acannxr]

And Woodley isn"t? Dana IS going to have to step up and start marketing Woodley though, because he keeps on winning, and that IS marketable.

What I don't understand is, if the UFC has an underselling champion, why aren't they booking them almost exclusively in the champion's home state?

None of these headliners are from Boston:

Why didn't they book DJ exclusively in Seattle? Those cards would also automatically draw crowds from Vancouver on the UFC brand alone.

Woodley has yet to defend the title in Missouri.

Cormier has yet to defend the title in New Orleans or San Jose.

Whittaker has yet to defend his title in Australia/New Zealand.

dos Anjos never defended his title in Brazil.

In boxing they book the champions in their home state until they become a draw, then they branch them out. The fact that there's no rhyme or reason for the location when booking a championship fight tells me that the UFC is only interested in promoting the UFC brand.

 

[awymore]

I really don't think fighting a MW (who has fought at LHW) is a good career decision for Rory....

Makes no sense to me either. Seems like Bellator was just wanting to copy the UFC and have their own super fight.