Rory MacDonald: “People Can Love Me or Hate Me, I Fight for Myself”

Rory MacDonald is fighting for a few different reasons, but one of them isn’t for the adoration of the fans.

It was very evident in the lead-up to his fight against B.J. Penn at UFC on Fox 5 that MacDonald was not going to be the fan favorite facing off against the Hawaiian legend.

Still most fighters will admit it’s not a good feeling to have an entire arena of people against you on a given night. There are those rare occasions where a fighter such as Josh Koscheck for instance, feeds off of the negative energy.

For Rory MacDonald, he’s like an assassin – cold, emotionless, and has a mission when he steps into the cage. No amount of cheers or boos are going to change what he has to do, and so nothing bothers him one way or the other.

“It doesn’t matter, I don’t fight for them,” MacDonald said about the crowd and fans. “People can love me or hate me, I fight for myself and because I love it. It is what it is.”

It may not make him a fan favorite by saying what he’s saying, but Rory MacDonald is just being himself, and if that attracts people to love him, great. If not, he’s not losing any sleep over it.

“I don’t care, as long as I fight well and I think I did. If they don’t like me, I can’t do anything about it. I’m just going to be me,” said MacDonald.

Whether you love him or hate him, MacDonald’s talent is undeniable and he’ll look to continue his recent streak as he moves into 2013 and his next fight in the UFC.

(photo courtesy of Will Fox)