Back in July, in the co-main event of UFC 189, Robbie Lawler and Rory MacDonald went to war for the better part of 5 rounds for the UFC welterweight championship.

Ultimately, Lawler landed a brutal cross that landed clean on the nose of MacDonald, who crumpled to the floor.

The fight is arguably one of the best in UFC history, and according to MacDonald, was also good for his career.

He spoke to MMAJunkie to discuss the fight, as well as his return to the Octagon.

“It was an amazing experience being able to go in there (and fight) five rounds, fight a fight with severe injuries that happened during the fight, like a broken nose and things like that; battling through that experience taught me lessons that I can’t get in the gym or any other experience. You have to get in there and feel it and know how to react to that situation. I’m happy I went through that because later on in my career, I’m going to have fights like that again, and I’m going to help be more composed and I’m going to act better, stay more relaxed, more focused, and I won’t freak out and gas out in the fifth like I did.

“It was really good for my career, and personally, I really enjoyed the experience. It was an amazing adrenaline rush to push through the things I was dealing with.”