UFC 140 Fight Card: Is Rory MacDonald the Hottest Prospect in the UFC?

For 22-year old UFC welterweight Rory MacDonald, being able to fight in the sport's premier promotion is a huge accomplishment for this young fighter.

Getting the chance to showcase his skills on the world's biggest stage would be a milestone in and of itself. But MacDonald is not just showing up to fights—he is winning them too.

Having fought professionally since the age of 18, the young Canadian was rolling through opponents on the local scene before joining the UFC. Before making his debut in the Octagon in January of 2010, MacDonald had gone a perfect 9-0 in his career and had the King of the Cage Lightweight belt already in his trophy case.

Since joining the UFC, MacDonald has certainly impressed.

Taking on Mike Guymon in his UFC debut, MacDonald just needed one round to tap out the now-retired veteran with an armbar.

Everything was looking up for MacDonald until he faced former top contender and WEC Welterweight champion Carlos Condit at UFC 115.

In the third round of their bout, which was later awarded with Fight of the Night honors, Condit started unloading with strikes before finishing MacDonald to take the technical knockout win.

Tasting defeat for the fist time, MacDonald did not let adversity sidetrack him for long, as the young Canadian fighter came back with a more evolved game against Nate Diaz.

A solid, well-rounded fighter, MacDonald showcased his wrestling skills against Diaz, taking his opponent down with huge takedowns in almost every round.  Revealing this skill set that had not been truly seen by MacDonald before really opened up people's eyes to his potential.

It was this win over Diaz that got people talking about whether he is the real deal.

With teammate and UFC Welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre as his training partner at Tristar Gym, MacDonald has evolved into one of the hottest prospects in the game.

MacDonald solidified this status when he finished veteran Mike Pyle in the first round of UFC 133, taking the TKO win in emphatic fashion.

Now owning back-to-back big wins over tough veterans, MacDonald has proven his worth in the welterweight division.

Other top prospects in the game, such as Ryan Bader and Phil Davis, have lost some of their luster due to either injury or a string of bad losses.

Unlike, say Bader once again, MacDonald used his first defeat to motivate himself to become a better fighter—a goal he has certainly accomplished thus far.

MacDonald at this stage is the hottest prospect in the UFC, as his well-rounded skill sets and big wins have propelled his status by leaps and bounds.

Now set to face Brian Ebersole at UFC 140, a win over another tough veteran will not only solidify MacDonald as one of the hottest commodities in the UFC, it will also add him as one of the top welterweights in the division.

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