Jason MacDonald could not answer the bell for the third and final round during his middleweight showdown with Rich Franklin at UFC 68 because of damage sustained to his right eye in the waning seconds of the second frame, according to the Edmonton Sun.
Here's a snip from "The Athlete:"
"I don't look so good. I have got some black eyes and seven stitches (around) that right eye. And I am still having some nasty pain in that eye.... The second last blow hit me square in the right eye and I saw a little flash and then at the end of the round I couldn't see out of my right eye."
And for those who speculate that MacDonald quit, he has some choice words in another interview on FCFighter.com.
Here is MacDonald again:
"Let me be very clear at no time did I say I was done or to quote some of the people on the net I quit! Remember I was the one moving forward on Rich not running away! I was on rubber legs though and could not see out of my right eye. Mark [trainer] saw this and made the decision to stop the fight. I did not even really know what went down but I never said I was done! Looking back Mark made the right choice because like I said I was in a lot of trouble and could not see out of my eye."
After the fight, MacDonald's trainer, Mark Pavelich, noticed some UFC staff members reveling over the Franklin win and thinks they were a little too excited with the outcome — a sight the did not sit well at all with the Canadian team.
Here's a snip from the trainer:
"I saw some of the UFC staff jumping up and down like Rich Franklin was their child or something and I took great, great offence to that. I am going to take that into training every day now until we get back there."
It's not all doom and gloom, however, for MacDonald in the wake of the defeat. The Edmonton Boxing and Wrestling Commission awarded MacDonald with the Mixed Martial Arts Fighter of the Year Award on Tuesday night.
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