B.J. Penn wants to move Rory MacDonald bout to UFC 153 in Rio, MacDonald eyes UFC 154 in Montreal

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

News of an injury to Rory MacDonald hit on Saturday night, a cut above his eyebrow that took him out of his UFC 152 bout with B.J. Penn. The cut was sustained while sparring, and required 38 stitches, according to MacDonald's manager Lex McMahon, who revealed the extent of the injury in an interview with MMAFighting.com's Ariel Helwani.

"Rory sustained an injury during sparring resulting in a significant gash above his right eye," McMahon said. "Rory immediately saw a doctor who administered 38 stitches. The significance and location of the would would make it impossible for Rory to train for a sustained period."

MacDonald would like to simply postpone their fight, but that will depend on how long Penn is willing to wait out of action. In comments on his own personal site, Penn revealed he'd be willing to keep the fight together for UFC 153 in Rio de Janeiro.

"I am sorry to hear about the injury to Rory, this is a fight that got me out of retirement and one that I was looking forward to," Penn said. "I would like to wish Rory a speedy and healthy recovery and request a postponement of our fight to the Rio card."

"To Rory, let's stay with VADA and continue through with the program from now until we fight!"

However, because the cut will not allow him to train for some time, MacDonald is targeting his return for UFC 154 in Montreal, and McMahon hopes Penn is willing to hold out a little longer to keep the fight.

Said McMahon, "We have notified the UFC that Rory will be ready to fight in November and requested that if it works for the UFC, and B.J. will agree, that Rory would love to fight B.J. on Nov. 17 in Montreal."

Penick's Analysis: Well, Penn holding out for MacDonald's return would shore up any issue of Penn finding a replacement for UFC 152. That's a definite blow to that card if Penn is gone, but with MacDonald being the man he'd like to face, he may be more willing to hold out for his return. Whether he's willing to hold out more than a month remains to be seen, but if he does hold out until the Montreal card, that event will feature three major fights in the welterweight division.

[B.J. Penn art by Cory Gould (c) MMATorch.com]

Kultar Gill Allan Goes Takanori The Fireball Kid Gomi Akihiro Gono Gabriel Gonzaga