Photo credit to PFL MMA PR
Ray Cooper III on PFL 2021 finals and Rory MacDonald bout
Ray Cooper III defeated Rory MacDonald in the main event of the inaugural 2021 PFL Playoffs show. The top of the marquee victory came by way of unanimous decision.
This bout transpired on Friday, August 13th from Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida; broadcasting on ESPN+ as well as ESPN 2.
A welterweight warrior who is no stranger to the PFL finals will again reacquaint himself with the tournament championship landscape here in 2021. I spoke with Ray Cooper III at the PFL 7 post-fight press conference about a rematch awaiting him in the finals this year as well as his assessment of the Rory MacDonald bout.
Ray Cooper III
There were prior instances in your career where you were able to have rematch opportunities. You came out and really turned it around. Got the victory, redeemed the loss.
Is it important to you to have this redemptive opportunity in the (Magomed) Magomedkerimov matchup coming up or do you not look at it through that kind of lens?
“Yeah, I don’t care for rematches. It’s in the past. This is a whole new fight. Same opponent but a different fight. I just want to get back to that championship match. Take home the belt again.”
The 2018 Champ vs The 2019 Champ!
Magomed Magomedkerimov & Ray Cooper III meet again in the 2021 #PFLChampionship! pic.twitter.com/tEpX6QqKlH— PFL (@PFLMMA) August 14, 2021
Just as a quick follow-up, I’m kind of curious how that Rory MacDonald fight played out relative to your preconceived notions.
“Yeah, I said it throughout the week, I knew he was gonna wrestle with me. Whatever traps he was trying to lay for me, I would run right through them. But nothing but respect for Rory. He’s a great competitor. He fought in the biggest organizations, but it played out how I said it was going to play out. He’s gonna want to stand at first, when I catch him, he’s gonna try to shoot. Then he’s going to try to wrestle. I can wrestle too.”
