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Georges St-Pierres departure from the welterweight scene, temporary or otherwise, changed the playing field for everyone in the UFCs 170-pound weight class. None more so than Rory (Ares) MacDonald. The 24-year-old can finally chase the title unencumbered. MacDonald, ranked No. 2 among welterweight contenders, trains at the same Montreal gym as the former UFC champion. St-Pierre has been one of his mentors. They share coaches and training partners. As MacDonald rose up the rankings, he and St-Pierre were constantly asked about whether the allies would ever fight. "It was pretty much any interview I did," said MacDonald. Now the landscape ahead is clear. "I feel like Im on my own path now," he said in an interview this week at Quebec City, where he was making appearances for the UFC around "The Ultimate Fighter Nations" finale card. "As much as I didnt think it was bothering me at the time, it was. Its a distraction, its always something in the back of your head. I never wanted any drama there, anything like that but at the same time I wanted what I wanted -- the (championship) belt. "So right now, the way it all worked out, I feel a lot less stress about it. I just feel like Im having fun, enjoying my time." MacDonald returns to his home province June 14 to face No. 3 Tyron (The Chosen One) Woodley in the co-main event at UFC 174 in Vancouvers Rogers Arena. The 32-year-old Woodley, an explosive former two-time All American wrestler from the University of Missouri, went 8-1 in Strikeforce before moving into the UFC. He opened his UFC account with a 36-second knockout of Jay Hieron. After a split-decision loss to Jake Shields, he bounced back with wins over Josh Koscheck and Carlos (The Natural Born Killer) Condit. The winner between MacDonald (16-2) and Woodley (13-2) will likely get a title shot at Johny Hendricks, who is recovering from bicep surgery and a fractured shin following his championship win over (Ruthless) Robbie Lawler at UFC 171 in March. MacDonald said he is happy to fight again before a possible title shot. "I wanted to. I didnt want to sit on the sidelines anyway," he said. "I think me against Tyron is a great matchup for a No. 1 contender shot. Weve both had good wins and good showings in our UFC careers." MacDonald watched the Hendricks-Lawler title fight from Hawaii where he was vacationing with his father and brother. He saw it as a close contest that came down to the fifth round. "I was really pulling for Lawler because I fought him in the past and have a lot of respect for the guys I fight," MacDonald said. "Obviously I was excited to see him do that well. "I just think Hendricks was the better man in the very end of the fight. He pushed it. He pushed through being tired, being hurt. Thats what a champion does. .. He finished hard, he won that last round. And thats what won him the fight in my opinion." MacDonald lost a split decision to Lawler at UFC 167 last November, when GSP won a controversial split decision over Hendricks. MacDonald admits there was a time before the Lawler bout when he did not enjoying fighting. "I had a lot of injuries I was battling through," he said. "It weighs on you." Looking back, he says he probably should have pulled out. "They (the injuries) were pretty serious. But I was sick of doing that," he said. "I was sick of getting injured before a fight, pulling out. I think fans were really annoyed with me doing that. I just had to fight through that." His only other loss was to Condit in June 2010 -- a TKO with seven seconds remaining -- at UFC 115 in Vancouver. It was MacDonalds second fight in the UFC and the adrenalin was pumping. He dominated the early going but the veteran Condit rallied in the final round. His first fight was a small televised event in January 2010 in Fairfax, Va., where Macdonald submitted Mike Guymon in four minutes 27 seconds. The frenzy of the Condit fight -- and audience -- took MacDonald by surprise. "People were going insane," MacDonald recalled in an earlier interview. "I never heard that level of noise in a building ... I was super-shocked and it just got me fired up to a point where it was, like, bad. If you watch that fight you could see the intensity that I was bringing and I dont think that was my style. And I paid for it." The loss was humiliating for MacDonald. "Because I was just laying there getting beaten on," he told reporters after his December 2012 win over B.J. Penn in Seattle. "My face looked like I was a guy from The Goonies after. I was embarrassed, I was embarrassed about my performance and how I held myself. It did a lot of damage and I dont think Ive been the same person since." The loss changed MacDonald. He moved from Kelowna, B.C., to Montreal in the aftermath to train with coach Firas Zahabi, St-Pierre and other elite fighters at the Tristar Gym. He also focused on fighting without emotion, reasoning that it contributed to the loss in Vancouver. MacDonald was slated to meet Condit again at UFC 158 in March 2013 but had to pull out due to injury. Hendricks stepped in and won, setting up his title shot against St-Pierre. MacDonald, meanwhile, rebounded from the Lawler loss with a unanimous decision over Brazilian submission ace Demian Maia at UFC 170 in February. Talk to MacDonald these days and you notice how big he is. The six-footer may fight at 170 pounds but its a weight he serves only occasionally. He walks around at 200 pounds. "Im big right now. Im not dieting but Im in shape," he said. MacDonald was just 14 when he started training in MMA. Born in Quesnel, B.C., MacDonald started training with David Lea in Kelowna. He had his first pro fight at age 16 in Prince George, because it was the only place to let him fight. Even then, his parents had to give their approval. He won the King of the Cage Canadian lightweight title at 18 -- in his sixth fight -- and the King of the Cage world 155-pound title in his next outing a year later. MacDonald became the UFCs youngest fighter when he signed on at 20 in the fall of 2009. Years later, he is comfortable in his own skin and happy with his fighting career. And while he is in a sport that often rewards self-promoters, MacDonald does things his own way. "Im not here to talk," he said. "Im not a great promoter but I believe I am one of the best fighters in the world. And Im going to be the best fighter in the world eventually. And I think people are going to appreciate what I bring to the cage." Goran Dragic Jersey . The 27-year-old hit .209 in 86 at-bats last year after missing the 2010 season following surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder. Cheap Miami Heat Jerseys .B. -- Canadian pairs skaters Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford went from elated to frustrated in the span of a few minutes. http://www.cheapheatjerseys.com/ . Eller scored the midway through the third period after Dallas scored twice to tie it, leading Canadiens to a 6-4 win over the Stars on Thursday night. Hassan Whiteside Jersey . He also had some help Monday night.Hibbert scored a season-high 29 points to help Indiana beat the Utah Jazz 97-86 Monday night, ending the Pacers six-game losing streak. Cheap Heat Jerseys . The international synchronized skating competition takes place from January 31 - February 1, 2014, and features 39 teams from 10 countries, in senior, junior, and novice.The Mike Kelly era, as short-lived as it was, kicked off a troubling five-year period for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Save for the season after their Swaggerville run to the Grey Cup – one that ultimately didnt pan out – Bombers fans have been subjected to the same hope-filled off-season rhetoric; what makes this the year they turn it around when the same pre-season confidence a year ago led to just more troubling results? And in a lot of ways this year could be similar. New general manager Kyle Walters was part of the old guard and new starting quarterback Drew Willy, he of just 147 career CFL passing attempts, cannot be considered the for-sure answer at quarterback. That isnt to say these things wont turn around this season, but old GM Joe Macks hiring got a lot of people excited in 2010, returning to the city where he won a Grey Cup before gaining extensive experience in NFL front offices; and Stefan LeFors, Buck Pierce, and Alex Brink all had failed tenures as quarterback of the future. But there is some tangible evidence the team could be breaking out of their five-year fog. Mike OShea leads the list of smart moves the team made in the off-season to quietly start a foundation that could lead to success. Its been a while since the Bombers landed a coveted candidate at head coach. OShea has been ticketed as someone to watch for years now after following up a very impressive playing career with a promising stint as special teams coordinator in Toronto. The Canadian football lifer oozes leadership and has the opportunity to set the standard for the Bombers roster as he helped to do with some strong Argonauts rosters the past couple years. Keeping Marcel Bellefeuille around as OSheas offensive coordinator gives the team a play caller with both head coaching and successful coordinator experience on his resume. And adding Danny McManus, by all accounts an up-and-comer in the player evaluation world, should be of benefit to Walters in the front office. And aside from losing out on the Zach Collaros sweepstakes – Willy was a decent consolation prize – the team added some important free agents to help in the culture change Winnipeg is undertaking. Nick Moore, who some had tabbed for the NFL after his breakout season, should be a fine replacement for Terrence Edwards as the go-to option in the receiving corps. And Korey Banks, who was added after a contract squabble with the BC Lions, stiill has a lot of game left to go along with his leadership and winning mentality.dddddddddddd Maybe this year wont be any different than ones previous, theres really no way of knowing if the new regime fits together to make a winner or not. And there likely wont be an easy team to pick off in the East Division. But aside from bringing with them a fresh air and new way of thinking, OShea and company have a winning attitude that could finally reverse the fortunes in Winnipeg. If youre apt to believe a change of culture is a noticeable step on the way to respectability, the Bombers could finally be making the first moves towards contending this season. Notes West Division The Blue Bombers are returning to where many CFL fans feel they belong, the West Division. With the Ottawa Redblacks joining the league and East Division, Winnipeg will jump back to the West, alongside the Lions, Stampeders, and Eskimos, and of course their longtime rivals in Saskatchewan. Terrence Edwards Retires Blue Bombers fans havent had a lot to cheer about the past couple years but one constant was Terrence Edwards tremendous play at receiver. Edwards spent seven of his nine CFL seasons in Winnipeg, five of which he surpassed 1,000 yards receiving, scoring a combined 46 touchdowns. Expansion Draft The Redblacks used the first two rounds of the expansion draft to nab from Winnipeg a promising young receiver in Wallace Miles, and a strong special teams player in FB James Green. The Bombers didnt suffer a loss in the third round however as the Redblacks selected impending free agent Rory Kohlert, a non-import receiver. Ottawa never signed Kohlert to a contract extension and he returned to Winnipeg just months later as a free agent. Free Agency Winnipeg should be relatively pleased with their off-season haul. They locked up some solid players on their own roster and landed a star receiver to replace Edwards in former BC Lion Nick Moore, and a quarterback they hope can lead the team now and in the future in former Saskatchewan Roughrider Drew Willy. CFL Draft With the second overall pick the Blue Bombers landed a solid offensive line prospect in Matthias Goossen, who they hope will be a mainstay for years to come. Winnipeg also selected McGill LB Jesse Briggs in the second round, Simon Fraser DB Derek Jones in the fourth round, Mount Allison DL Quinn Everett in the sixth round, and McMaster LB Aram Eisho in the seventh round. 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