For the Nova Scotian prospect and Fredericton, N.B. fireman Rory Gillis (2-0)—who faces Drake Farrell (2-0) for Fight League Atlantic's amateur welterweight title this Saturday—the road to his first MMA outing stretched long, painful, and deeply frustrating. A knee injury coupled with its demanding rehab regimen in 2017 derailed his planned debut slated for that very year, and the disruption lingered well beyond; then the pandemic struck.
By early 2020, Gillis had relocated from British Columbia to Fredericton to start his career on the front lines, and now, years past his anticipated MMA debut, found himself stripped of fighting opportunities while thrust into an entirely different kind of trial.
Through it all, he kept sharpening his craft as a martial artist while navigating professional obstacles that, much like cage combat, few outside the arena truly understand.
"During lockdown we were just a very small group of people (at Evolution Fight and Fitness) trying to train as best we could, or if not, find as good of alternatives to (MMA) training as possible," said Gillis in an interview with MMA Empire.
"I watched a lot of instructionals during that period and just drilled with a couple buddies because that's all we were allowed to do with the small bubbles (of permitted social-gathering sizes) at that time. Then, once training finally opened up later and the gyms all opened up again, I was ready to go full-bore at it again."
Poor timing, it seems, continued to dog Gillis, with the oft-maligned "MMA Gods" refusing to grant him relief even after his patience wore thin. They tested his resolve further with yet another string of cancelled bouts throughout 2021—where he dealt with an ankle injury merely two weeks out from his scheduled fight—and into the first six months of last year.
At long last, his moment arrived last June, when he earned a unanimous decision over Matt Macdonald and added another over Colton Grant-Hose in October. Now fully back in the rhythm of mixed martial arts, Gillis recalls that first fight where he finally released the demons of training season after season without the payoff he'd been promised.
"It was exciting. I was dying to get in there because I'd had so many fights cancelled and life just happening and you just never know when you're going to get another opportunity in this sport. So I got in there with Matt, but there was a big adrenaline dump I didn't expect at the start of the fight, and he was a good pressure fighter," said Gillis.
"Felt like he was tiring me out a bit on the feet, but I was able to implement my ground game and eventually get the decision. I took some lessons from that first fight, with Matt; I found I was too flat-footed and put too much emphasis into my strength, which was my grappling, so the camp after that I really started to focus on my striking, which actually made my takedowns easier to secure in the next fight (with Grant-Hose) after I'd improved on the feet. There was a little extra pressure in that one, though. Because it was in New Glasgow (N.S.) which was actually very close to my hometown; I grew up about a half hour away, so there was a bunch of high school friends and family members who ended up attending the event. Overall though, I was more calm that time out. I knew my opponent was game, but I was able to tire him out and run ahead on the scorecards in the third round."
As he approaches this weekend's title match against Farrell—who mirrors his perfect 2-0 record—Gillis expressed appreciation for the consecutive 15-minute bouts in his initial outings, citing Farrell's stamina as perhaps his greatest threat.
"I've been focusing on my conditioning this entire camp, and making sure I'm in as good of shape as possible," he said.
"I know I'm going to need it for this fight because Drake is well-known on the east coast for having a big gas tank, as well as great jiu-jitsu and scrambling. He's always in the fight, so I'm going to have to take the fight to him, and really go for the finish in this one. He's a tough bastard, never relents, and won't stop unless you can find a way to stop him."
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