Rory MacDonald will defend his Bellator welterweight title against former WSOF welterweight king John Fitch in a five-round showdown that will headline Bellator 220 on April 27, 2019 at the SAP Center in San Jose, California.
The bout will also form part of the first round of the Bellator Welterweight Grand Prix. MacDonald is coming off a knockout loss at the hands of Bellator middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi while Fitch is fresh off a successful Bellator debut where he decisioned Paul Daley. Read our MMA betting tips before you bet on Bellator 220.
The Red King stands 6-0 and has a reach of 76.5 inches while fighting as an orthodox fighter. MacDonald has a record of 20-5 with seven wins by knockout and seven victories via submission. The 29-year old Montreal, Quebec, Canada native is a complete fighter with background in boxing, Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and wrestling.
Rory MacDonald was the protege of former UFC great and Canadian superstar Georges St. Pierre. MacDonald trained and developed with GSP at the famed Tristar Gym in Canada. He is only 29 years old but already has the resume of a grizzled veteran. Macdonald fought Robbie Lawler for the UFC welterweight title at UFC 189 in a fight that would become the 2015 Fight of the Year. Unfortunately, he lost that bout after suffering a busted nose.
MacDonald was Bellator’s top free agent signee in 2016. He made his Bellator debut by submitting Paul Daley at Bellator 179 and then won the Bellator welterweight title by dominating Douglas Lima at Bellator 192. He challenged Bellator middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi in a super fight at Bellator 206 but was too small and got knocked out by the Dreamcatcher in two rounds.
MacDonald
-350
Fitch
+265
Odds from Bovada as of 4/09/19
John Fitch is also 6-feet tall and has a reach of 74 inches and also fights as an orthodox fighter. He has a record of 31-7-1-1 with 5 knockouts and 6 submissions. The 41-year old San Jose, California native is primarily a wrestler inside the cage with his NCAA Division 1 wrestling background.
Fitch also came from the UFC and compiled a record of 14-3-1 for the then Zuffa-owned promotion. He also challenged for the UFC welterweight title in 2008, losing via unanimous decision to Georges St. Pierre at UFC 87 in a Fight of the Night winner. After losing to Demian Maia at UFC 156, Fitch moved to the World Series of Fighting where would make his mark.
At WSOF 30, Fitch defeated Joao Zeferino to win the vacant WSOF welterweight title in 2016. Fitch successfully defended his title against another former UFC fighter in Jake Shields at WSOF 34. He vacated the title in 2019 and signed with Bellator MMA. Fitch made his Bellator debut by defeating Paul Daley at Bellator 199 in May 2018.
MacDonald is one of the best welterweight fighters in the planet. The kid learned the tricks of the trade from none other than Georges St. Pierre. But if you think GSP is boring, Rory is not and he often gets in trouble because of his aggressive style. The Red King is a very intelligent fighter who has a stiff jab and is an elite fighter in the stand up. Because he is a disciple of GSP, he’ also has an excellent take down game and there are times when he puts his opponents on the ground, at will. MacDonald can win in many ways: He can knock you out in the stand up of he can submit you on the ground.
Fitch meanwhile is one of the most accomplished welterweight fighters of this era and is known for his elite wrestling ability. He also has a BJJ black belt so you know Fitch is going to be tough to grapple with on the mat. Other than solid wrestling though, Fitch only has a decent to good striking and the same goes with his punching power, He isn’t a knockout artist nor is he a submission expert. But with excellent cardio, he is able to take his fights to the trenches, beat his opponents with aggression and work rate and win by decision.
The main factor in this fight is Fitch not having knockout power. That’s because MacDonald is a very aggressive fighter who usually takes the fight to his opponents. The only times we saw Rory hesitate were against Lawler and Mousasi, who both have insane knockout power. Without that kind of striking, MacDonald will try to walk right through John Fitch.
Of course we know Fitch to be excellent on the ground, that’s where he thrives. But remember that Rory MacDonald grew and trained with GSP. Now that may be an overused description but remember than MacDonald beat BJJ master Demian Maia while Fitch lost to the Brazilian. I’m sure Fitch will have the edge on the ground but it’s not as much as the advantage Rory will have on their feet.
I think Fitch is a tough cookie and he’s going to hang around with the champ. But MacDonald is younger, stronger and will probably be bigger on fight night. Rory MacDonald has all the physical advantages here. He is also the more balanced fighter. I expect him to dominate John Fitch and win by unanimous decision. Prediction: Rory MacDonald by decision but I won’t be surprised if he scores an early knockout
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How much is Rory Macdonald worth? The 29-year-old Canadian mma fighter has done well thus far! Most of Rory’s money comes from being a mma fighter.