Rory MacDonald Says Bellator Contract Has Expired, Still Believes Lima Trilogy ‘Very Likely’

Rory MacDonald thought he might have enough to retain his welterweight title in the Bellator 232 headliner on Saturday night in Uncasville, Conn.

However, he also acknowledged that he could have put together a more decisive overall performance to win more rounds on the judges’ scorecards. Ultimately, it was Douglas Lima who emerged with a relatively clear-cut unanimous decision triumph with scorecards of 50-45, 50-45 and 49-46 to capture the welterweight grand prix crown, championship belt and $1 million payout.

“I had good moments. It was close every, single round,” MacDonald told media following the event. “What I feel I should have done is put the gas on a little more. I felt like when I had good moments, I backed off, let him recover and I just gave too much leeway instead of having that gas pedal on a little earlier. I felt comfortable with where I was in the fight. I felt confident, maybe more confident than I should have been in the scoring.

“The rounds just got away from me. Every round was tight though. I’m not too down about it. Just obviously wish I could have done a little more during the fight.”

As the fight progressed, MacDonald believed he was slightly ahead of Lima. However, “The Red King” struggled to land takedowns and Lima gradually grew more comfortable landing leg kicks and sharp left hands.

“It’s always so hard to judge in the moment,” MacDonald said. “How I was feeling is I thought I was up two [rounds] to one by the third. Fourth [round], I thought I was up. I really thought I was doing well but he landed great shots, too. Every round was tight. It’s not like, ‘Oh for sure I won that round,’ so maybe I should have acted a little more hungry in there earlier. I went into the fifth and at that point time was on his side I think.

“I knew it was tight. It was a close fight every round, like as I said. It’s hard to say how the judges are going to look at it. In the moment it can feel different from how it looks from an outside perspective so a lot goes on in there really fast.”

MacDonald took a five-round verdict over Lima to claim the welterweight crown in his sophomore promotional appearance at Bellator 192. With that in mind, the Tristar Gym representative believes a trilogy bout would make sense. First, though, there’s the matter of reaching a new contract agreement with Bellator.

“It’s [a trilogy] very likely,” MacDonald said. “We had two close fights. He won one, I won one. It’s kind of inevitable that we’ll probably fight again.

“I wouldn’t say no. If they want to do it, they can do it. First I’ve got to re-sign. My contract expired. We’ve got to deal with that situation. Obviously if they want to give a title shot, sure.”