Bellator 179 was a memorable show, and the ending was fitting to a great night of fights. After former UFC welterweight title contender Rory MacDonald had choked out Paul Daley in the main event of Bellator 179, there was a scuffle. Chamatkar Sandhu was on-site and captured some great footage of Daley confronting top prospect […]
Bellator 179 was a memorable show, and the ending was fitting to a great night of fights. After former UFC welterweight title contender Rory MacDonald had choked out Paul Daley in the main event of Bellator 179, there was a scuffle.
Chamatkar Sandhu was on-site and captured some great footage of Daley confronting top prospect Michael Page. After the brief scuffle happens, Daley is taken away by security. You can watch it here:
Page was scheduled to fight Derek Anderson in the co-main event of the show but unfortunately, he had to withdraw from his fight due to a knee injury. Although Page as never been booked to fight his fellow compatriot, Daley has been very vocal in the past about what he thinks of Page.
In previous interviews, Daley has called Page “deluded,” and said of Page’s latest injury-related withdraw, “It seems that every time there is a genuine test for Mike, where we see if we can see something else, not someone who can necessarily beat him, but someone who will be able to highlight something or see if he has the right quality to go forward, he seems to get injured.”
Bellator 179 took place on Friday, May 19, 2017, at the SSE Arena in London, England. The prelims aired on online at 7 p.m. ET while the main card aired on tape delay at 9:00 pm EST on Spike TV.
Rory MacDonald made his Bellator debut a successful one against Paul Daley tonight (May 19). MacDonald took on Daley inside the SSE Arena, Wembley in London, England. “Red King” was in search of his first win since Oct. 2014. “Semtex” looked to get his second straight victory. The winner of the bout was set to […]
Rory MacDonald made his Bellator debut a successful one against Paul Daley tonight (May 19). MacDonald took on Daley inside the SSE Arena, Wembley in London, England. “Red King” was in search of his first win since Oct. 2014. “Semtex” looked to get his second straight victory. The winner of the bout was set to […]
It’s once again fight day here at LowKickMMA, and the talent on display tonight (Friday, May 19th, 2017) will come in the form of Bellator 179. Headlining the card are Rory MacDonald and Paul Daley, but there’s a whole bunch of great fights also taking place on the rest of the main card. The event […]
It’s once again fight day here at LowKickMMA, and the talent on display tonight (Friday, May 19th, 2017) will come in the form of Bellator 179. Headlining the card are Rory MacDonald and Paul Daley, but there’s a whole bunch of great fights also taking place on the rest of the main card.
The event was taped earlier today and aired on a tape-delay on Spike TV at 9 p.m. ET. Here are the results for this event:
MAIN CARD (Spike TV/9 p.m. ET)
Rory MacDonald def. Paul Daley via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 1:45
Let’s be honest with ourselves here. When the this bout was first announced the initial reaction was that of pure excitement. While the modern day UFC execs want you to believe that there isn’t a possibility of exciting fights outside of the promotion. Paul Daley versus Rory MacDonald is example of just how crazy that thought process truly is. Each of these men bring something to the table to make this an immensely intriguing bout.
Let’s be honest with ourselves here. When the this bout was first announced the initial reaction was that of pure excitement. While the modern day UFC execs want you to believe that there isn’t a possibility of exciting fights outside of the promotion. Paul Daley versus Rory MacDonald is example of just how crazy that thought process truly is. Each of these men bring something to the table to make this an immensely intriguing bout.
The style clash in this match is pretty intriguing. Where Rory MacDonald may have a more well rounded game, Paul Daley is the slugger that can put anyone out with a couple of well placed shots. Daley has always done well playing the aggressive counter striker, specifically when you consider the fact that he has dynamite in his fist. His kicks and knees are also incredibly destructive as many a victim as discovered. His most recent victim Brennan Ward had to learn the hard way that you either create distance and separate from Daley or face the crushing consequences.
Daley has the tools to win this fight, but it’s a matter of staying disciplined throughout. He can’t stay on the center line and expect to do work against MacDonald. Instead, he’s going to have to offer a moving target for the former UFC title challenger as to avoid being taken to the ground. His left hook to the head followed up with another to the body will help to keep MacDonald’s hands at home. A well placed cross or over hand right will also deter the Canadian from throwing out his jab recklessly. Leg kicks should also help, but he’ll need to set things up with either a jab or left hook as standing right in front of MacDonald is simply a recipe for disaster.
On the other hand you have Rory MacDonald who is much more of an all around technician. Rather than come into fights with go to weapons that makes him feared by the opposition, what really makes him such a danger fighter is his ability to game plan, search for weaknesses in his opponent’s game and attack it with calculated precision. MacDonald is the type of fighter that will find out exactly what you want to do, file it away for further study, then exploit that weakness as the bout carries on. Coming from TriStar you can expect nothing less. They tailor their game to their opponents. But you can always expect to see one element that remains constant. The jab.
Rory MacDonald is proficient at throwing the jab and should really am to use it against a striker the caliber of Daley. But rather than just use the jab as a range finder or set up, MacDonald needs to vary the way he utilizes the strike. Daley will likely look to counter off of the jab so full commitment in the first round should be saved for when MacDonald becomes used to the distance. He should use the jab as a range finder first, then as a set up, then as an actual snappy hurting punch. Rory should also utilize his kicking game as much as possible. MacDonald is more than likely going to be the man to initiate the wrestling game so he should be aiming to use kicks as much as possible, particularly the front snap kick that will both wind Daley and keep the slugger at bay.
This will be one of the highest profile Bellator fights ever, particularly when you consider how highly touted Rory MacDonald is. This is a shining opportunity for Paul Daley to play spoiler and build his and Bellator’s brand. That alone makes this fight one to watch.
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Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his Twitter and Facebook to keep up with his antics.
Rory MacDonald was one arguably the UFC’s hottest prospect, a young bulldozer who was thought to be the next welterweight ruler in the years following the legendary run of his good friend and TriStar Gym training partner Georges St-Pierre. And “The Red King” nearly summited that peak, taking then-champ Robbie Lawler to the absolute brink […]
Rory MacDonald was one arguably the UFC’s hottest prospect, a young bulldozer who was thought to be the next welterweight ruler in the years following the legendary run of his good friend and TriStar Gym training partner Georges St-Pierre.
And “The Red King” nearly summited that peak, taking then-champ Robbie Lawler to the absolute brink in the third round of their instant classic co-main event at July 2015’s UFC 189. But true to his “Ruthless” namesake, the champion was able to weather a brutal storm and come back even stronger, destroying MacDonald’s nose on the way to one of the bloodiest stoppages – and greatest fights – we’ve ever seen in the octagon.
MacDonald took almost a year to heal from a badly broken nose, and returned to face then-surging number one contender Stephen Thompson last June. He appeared to be less aggressive than the stalking psychopath fans had grown accustomed to, and “Wonderboy” outclassed him on the feet over the course of five rounds in what was the last fight on MacDonald’s UFC contract.
Since then, the star has signed with Bellator MMA and largely spoken out against the business practices of the UFC, something that more and more fighters are doing on what seems like a daily basis right now. Each new day’s headlines bring a cry of discontent from one fighter or another (and many times more) in the year following the company’s record-setting $4.2 billion sale to talent agency WME-IMG, but MacDonald is in the position to be far more specific and candid as an employee of a rival promotion.
The Canadian brawler will make his Bellator debut against UFC vet and British knockout slugger Paul Daley in the main event of tonight’s (Fri., May 19, 2017) Bellator 179 from England, and during a media call to promote the event this week (via MMA Fighting), Macdonald touched on why his new bosses are doing it right. To him, he feels like an actual person rather than a sheep meant to do the UFC’s bidding:
“I think Bellator gets it, they want to build a character around each and every guy on the roster. They want to build up the names and let people see the real sides of them and they can build that up. The UFC kind of has lost that, everyone is wearing the same thing, everybody is trying to be Conor McGregor, and it’s lost it’s feel a little bit.
“[I’m] just more involved rather than just being another guy in the line, another number, another sheep,” MacDonald said. “So, I just feel more respected, more attention to detail when it comes to the promotion of myself.”
MacDonald may have a good point, as there’s little evidence to deny that many fighters in the UFC are trying to follow the wildly successful money-making gameplan of ‘The Notorious,’ with ridiculous match-ups being discussed and booked to mostly disastrous results in the eyes of the sport’s truest and most loyal fans.
MacDonald then opened up about the current state of MMA fighter morale, noting that things are bad and getting worse, so any competition that puts more money into the fighters’ pockets is a good thing:
“Everybody’s situation is getting worse there and increasingly people are getting more and more unhappy,” MacDonald said. “And seeing that there’s money to be made, just the way they’re treated in general. They’re not content with it, so, it’s got there’s a competitor in the marketplace and that’s just going to make everybody get better. More options for the fighters, everyone’s going to get more money and it’s going to be better for MMA the sport in general.”
Bellator 179 is here, and it goes down tonight (Friday, May 19, 2017) from the SSE Arena in London, England. The prelims will air on online at 7 p.m. ET while the main card will air on tape delay at 9:00 pm EST on Spike TV. A welterweight fight pitting Paul Daley against Rory MacDonald
Bellator 179 is here, and it goes down tonight (Friday, May 19, 2017) from the SSE Arena in London, England. The prelims will air on online at 7 p.m. ET while the main card will air on tape delay at 9:00 pm EST on Spike TV.
A welterweight fight pitting Paul Daley against Rory MacDonald will serve as the main event while Liam McGeary vs. Linton Vassell in a light heavyweight bout will serve as the co-main event. Rounding out the main card is Cheick Kongo vs. Augusto Sakai in a heavyweight bout, Dan Vinni vs. Alex Lohore in a welterweight bout and Kevin Ferguson Jr. vs. D.J. Griffin in a welterweight bout.
According to oddsmakers, MacDonald is a -330 favorite over Daley, who is a +270 underdog. Other odds for the main card include Vassell being a +175 underdog against McGeary, who is a -210 favorite. Here are the odds for three bouts that will be taking place on the main card:
Welterweight: Rory MacDonald (-330) vs. Paul Daley (+270)
Light Heavyweight: Liam McGeary (-210) vs. Linton Vassell (+175)
Heavyweight: Cheick Kongo (-260) vs. Augusto Sakai (+220)
