10 Questions With Danny Abbadi (9/9/2009)

[DarrickPatrick]

10 Questions With Danny Abbadi (by Darrick Patrick)

Danny "The Assassin" Abbadi is a professional mixed martial artist who has competed in organizations such as the Ultimate Fighting Championship, World Extreme Fighting, Fight Force International, Mid South Brawl, Extreme Fighting International, and World X-Impact Federation. He also appeared on the third season of the television show The Ultimate Fighter. At the time of this interview, his next scheduled match is against Shonie Carter in the main event of Respect In The Cage on September 20th, 2009.

Darrick: What was the path that led you to competing professionally in mixed martial arts?

Danny: Well, first of all, it has been a long journey and it is still going. I started off as a normal martial arts practitioner doing Taekwondo and regular Muay Thai. Then all of the sudden I moved from Brooklyn, New York to Memphis, Tennessee and met a friend named John David, and he was very much into Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. I really didn't understand BJJ at the time and thought my stand-up was all that I needed to win a fight. He told me that stand-up is only part of it all and boy was he right. He took me down and choked me out within about twenty seconds. (Laughs) After that, he introduced me to Jeff Mullen who owned Mid South Karate which is now called Mullen Karate Kickboxing. This is where a lot of big namers started such as Rampage Jackson, Alan Belcher, Mike Pyle, and myself. After training with those guys and learning the basics of MMA, I fell in love with it. I have now been traveling all over the place since then to keep on learning, fighting, and bettering myself. I'm still young, so I believe I'm still on that same path to becoming the champ.

Darrick: Any words of advice for other individuals looking to compete in MMA?

Danny: If you want to compete, you have to know that there are ups and downs when involved in this sport. You can't become a champ right away, but at the same time you can't train like there will always be another chance after this one. Train hard and take every fight as serious as you would if you were fighting for the championship belt. No matter what happens, keep your head up. You can't tell the true colors of a champion when they're winning and in the spotlight, but it shines through when they're down and fighting to get back to the top.

Darrick: Your next scheduled fight is against Shonie Carter on September 20th. What are your thoughts about this upcoming match?

Danny: Shonie is a great fighter with good stand-up and great Judo. I know he's going to want to take me down and I know I'm going to want to stand with him. It's a chess game and whoever can play their game is going to win. I'm going to go in there, put my game into affect right away, and look for a knockout. If it happens to go all three rounds, I'm definitely going to be working on the decision win.

Darrick: Who are a few of the people in the sport that you highly respect?

Danny: Vitor Belfort is my idol and I train with him at Xtreme Couture now. I've been a fan of his since I was young, which was during his earlier days in the UFC. That's a long time ago now for those that remember, right? (Laughs) I respect him in and out of the cage. He's a super nice guy and very helpful. Shawn Tompkins is a great person as well. I knew of him and after I lost a close fight early this year, he pulled me to the side and said, "Danny, if you ever need a place to train, come to Vegas and I'll help you train." He didn't have to do that, but he did. This is a guy that has dozens and dozens of top name guys, and he takes time out of his days to help coach me. I respect that a lot. Thanks, Shawn.

Darrick: What brings you the most fulfillment out of martial arts?

Danny: Competing is what makes me happy. I love it. You see everything from competing. From how hard and disciplined the fighter your facing is to how much integrity, sportsmanship, and courage they have.

Darrick: Who are some of the people that greatly influenced you while growing up?

Danny: I know everyone says their mom, dad, and family - just saying it to be saying it, but honestly my family has had the greatest impact on me. From my mother and father who pushed me to compete to my brothers that made me feel like a champ yelling their lungs out cheering for me as I walk down those runways. I love them all for that.

Darrick: Outside of MMA, what are your other interests?

Danny: Mixed martial arts is my life and sometimes even when I'm getting away from MMA for a bit, I still find myself watching it and enjoying it by accident. (Laughs) I'm like, "Oh wow, I'm watching MMA right now." I love to play blackjack as well, soccer is awesome, and I like going to open gyms with friends to do acrobatics/flips. I also enjoy just hanging out at the beach, going to clubs, and relaxing.

Darrick: What is your oldest memory?

Danny: Wow, I can recall a lot actually. I remember when I first started Taekwondo when I was a kid around four years old and got my yellow belt. I also remember when my parents moved us from Jordan to the United States. It's weird because I was three years old at the time, but I can remember it like yesterday.

Darrick: Tell us something about you that most people don't know.

Danny: I'm one of the most laid back, cool, and chill guys out there. I love to laugh and just have a good time. I don't do the whole arguing thing and I'm game for whatever. If you want to go out, let's go out. If you want to stay in, then whatever. I get along with everyone and can start a conversation with anyone. Oh, and I love CSI. (Laughs)

Darrick: When you're no longer amongst the living, how would you most like to be remembered?

Danny: Well, I do a lot of charity events. I don't do them so people can say, "Oh wow, he does charity events" or anything like that, but I know that if a lot of people don't remember me for fighting then they will definitely remember as that guy. I'd like to be remembered as the guy who always gave a helping hand, who didn't judge you, and would listen to you no matter what. As the person who understood you and made an effort to help you in any situation. I want to be the guy for people who feel as if they don't have anyone. Even though I come from a huge family, we all feel really down at least once in our lifetime. It's not a great feeling and we all need to have someone there. Well, I want to be that someone.

In closing, I'd like to say thanks for the interview and I appreciate those reading this for taking the time to get to know me a little better and for my friends/fans that are following my career. I'd also like to give thanks to all of my sponsors and thank you very much to Inner Strength Clothing.

FOR OTHER EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS BY DARRICK PATRICK:

http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=4974388&blogID=343519835

You can also check out Danny Abbadi in the following places:

Official Danny Abbadi MySpace Profile:

http://www.myspace.com/egyptiandanny

Official Danny Abbadi Facebook Site:

http://www.facebook.com/dannyabbadi

Danny Abbadi on Fight Finder:

http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Danny-Abbadi-16696

Danny Abbadi Photo Gallery at Sherdog.com:

http://www.sherdog.com/pictures/gallery/fighter/16696