Issue 187

January 2020

Fighting in the UFC's Octagon takes no little courage, but fighting a Russian on Russian soil requires a different level of mental fortitude. At UFC Moscow Brit Danny Roberts embarked on his own Rocky IV adventure.

UFC welterweight Danny Roberts has had plenty of bright moments in the Octagon but on Saturday, November 9th, 2019 he had his finest moment to date.

Coming off the back of two losses, the Brit stepped into the CSKA Arena in Moscow, Russia with the odds stacked against him in very hostile territory. A difficult fight week and aggressive opponent meant things were far from comfortable for Roberts during his time in the Russian capital, but by the end of the night, he was the one left standing tall celebrating victory.

Zelim Imadaev was the man who stood across the cage from Roberts in Moscow and with eight career wins, all inside the distance, the Brit knew that he was in for a firefight. After a fast-paced first round and equally as exciting second, the finish of the fight came with just six seconds left on the clock in round two as both men looked to land heavy shots in the center of the cage to finish the round on top.

Imadaev threw his right hand a split second before the Brit, but Roberts slipped the shot and then found a home for a beautiful left hand that connected with the Russian’s chin and sent him face-first to the mat. It was a sight that silenced the 11,305 fans packed inside the arena as Roberts wheeled away and celebrated his first win of 2019.

Speaking recently in an exclusive interview with Fighters Only, Roberts recalled how he knew the second the punch landed that it was game over for the Russian.

“It was like when a soccer player hits a free-kick and from the moment it leaves his foot he knows he’s hit the sweet spot and that it’s going to fly into the back of the net,” Roberts said with a wry smile. “I knew I timed it perfectly and I felt the crack when I hit his jaw. He went left-right and I went right-left, but the difference was he threw a power punch first and didn’t set it up. It’s basic stuff. When you throw a combination you have to set up the power punch with the first shot because if you don’t do that you are going to be slow when retracting your shot.

“During fight week we knew we were going to do things the Danny Roberts way and end this s***,” he continued. “You can’t take a shower without getting wet and I could feel like the ending shot was going to be a slip-backhand. Lo and behold, he threw a deep and heavy backhand and then tried to come back with a hook, but by the time he’d done that I slipped it and threw a pinpoint left hook. We rehearsed it time and time again and it paid off. He was done. One-shot. I’ve got power.”

Going to Russia to fight a Russian isn’t exactly an assignment many fighters would relish when coming off the back of consecutive defeats, but Roberts never looked upon it so simply. For him, fighting Imadaev on his own turf was always going to be a challenge that could draw the best out of him and make him dig deeper than a fight on home soil.

“If I’m honest, it’s something that didn’t really come into my head,” Roberts said. “Obviously, when you’re going to Russia and fighting a Russian, all the odds are against you. I relish that though and as one of the two Brits over there, I lapped it all up. For me, it just seemed like Gladiator s***. Like in the film 300, when they are always going into hostile territories in small numbers and still getting the job done. That’s the art of war. I wanted to prove I could do that and this was the right opportunity to do exactly that.”

On paper, Roberts held the upper hand in terms of experience, but the Russian was still a heavy favorite with the bookmakers. Imadaev’s devastating run prior to joining the UFC obviously held favor with those who made the odds, but looking at him on paper Roberts never feared the man in front of him.

“I knew a few things and I did have a vague look at him,” Roberts said. “For me, it was as simple as looking at his record and pulling that apart. I could see he was young and had eight knockout wins in the first round so he was going to be confident. The fact he’d lost on his UFC debut to [Max] Griffin told me he was always going to want to make a statement in his next fight so I knew he’d come out firing. I looked at a few of his recent fights, but I honestly didn’t want to look too much into him.”

Although not intimidating in regards to his professional resume, Imadaev did his best to make Roberts’ trip to Russia as uncomfortable as possible. During fight week the two ran into one another on plenty of occasions and according to Roberts, the Russian did everything he could to try to make him feel unwelcome.

“As far as him [Imadaev], he’s a bad person,” Roberts said. “People know him and he’s been kicked out of a few gyms. He’s just an aggressive person in every sense of the word. During fight week we had a few run-ins with him. During the staredown, we had a little scuffle, at the hotel he tried to step out the lift to come towards me and say something. I’ve heard he’s followed people out to the car park even at the gym he’s been training at.

“I just knew I wanted to silence this kid and teach him some respect,” he continued. “He told me that I had a weak chin and that I was going to get knocked out in the first round. I wanted to be the person that gave him that wake-up call.”

It wasn’t just Imadaev that gave Roberts and his team the cold shoulder during fight week. Being in surroundings where few people looked the same or spoke the same language made for a somewhat unusual lead-up to the fight but it just made their collective resolve all that much stronger.

“Russia was cold in more ways than one,” Roberts said. “You can’t really smile at people because that for them is a sign of disrespect. My cornerman Greg Jones and my agent Yuri that came across with us, as black guys when we were walking around the streets we were the minority. Yeah things were a little hostile and there were looks from people, but we expected that. They are a very purist country and it’s not until you are there, slap bang in the middle of Moscow that you understand how different it is.

 “We had this crazy week where people weren’t being too helpful when we were cutting weight and just the small things like grocery shopping were harder than normal,” he continued. “It felt like just because we weren’t Russian, people weren’t so quick to help us you know. Yeah, it was difficult, but it only made the bond between my small camp stronger. It was just different to normal and I took so much strength from it. I didn’t try to change anything and I was confident about being myself and going out there and doing what I did.”

Three losses in a row in the UFC can often lead to a fighter losing their place on the roster and on most occasions those with back-to-back defeats carry a heavy burden on their shoulders heading into the Octagon. Despite this trend, Roberts said he never felt the anxiety of his job being on the line and that he felt his previous fights under the UFC banner spoke volumes in terms of the excitement that he can bring to any fight card.

“There was only one time after the Pereira fight when I felt like my job could be on the line,” Roberts said. “The UFC never came to me directly so I quickly realized that it was only people from the outside applying that pressure. They just made the assumption that it would be three losses and I would be out, but they didn’t look into the detail of my whole UFC career. Yes, I had lost two fights in a row, but when you looked at my overall UFC career I’d been involved in a lot of very good fights.

“The things I had done had made big statements,” he continued. “Even in defeat, I’ve put on good fights. I think that gives you the extra edge to stay in the UFC because being real it’s the entertainment business. I knew that if I went out there and fought like I do that I would be OK. People can be very fickle sometimes. Especially when it comes to fighters and their careers.”

Roberts’ claim to not feeling the pressure heading into UFC Moscow was somewhat confirmed given his performance on the night. 

Neither he nor Imadaev took a step back during the frenetic exchanges and Roberts showed no signs of the partisan Russian getting to him. According to Roberts, it was the case of the bigger the obstacle in front of him, the bigger the motivation he had to prove his doubters wrong.

“Just look at what I did in there,” Roberts said. “I engaged and I took risks. That’s not what a fighter who fears for their job does. Every fight for me is a clean slate and a chance to prove something brand new. It’s a new opportunity to go out there and prove we are thankful for the platform we have been given to showcase our skills. 

“It was a very spiritual moment for me,” he continued, “and I just went in there to enjoy myself in hostile territory and that’s exactly what happened. I forgot all the thousands of Russians that were in the arena and just focused on my job and what I was going to do that night. In the end, I found the shot.”

After landing the fight-ending left hand and seeing Imadaev crumple to the mat, Roberts scaled the top of the cage and celebrated with his team. Although normally more reserved with his celebration in victory, this one was special and one that he felt he deserved to share with the men who stood by his side through a turbulent few days.

“It was ridiculously silent and I’m not usually one to run and jump on the cage, but this time things were very different,” Roberts said. “I usually keep contained but this time it was a moment that I needed to share with me and my guys. There was no one else there to enjoy this with us. We soaked up everything in hostile territory, we knew the bookmakers had us as underdogs and that everyone was writing us off. This was the real s*** motherf***er. This was how we do it. That’s what self-belief can do. We had no doubt between the three of us when everyone else said we couldn’t do it.”

After scoring such an impressive and emphatic win in Russia, Roberts received widespread praise across the MMA community. Whilst happy to have the support and adulation, the Brit has made a point of staying grounded and not forgetting that many of the people praising him were not so long ago doubting that he had what it takes to make it at the highest level.

“It’s more about the ‘good luck’ messages than it is about the ‘well done’ messages,” Roberts said. “You understand that once you produce a channel of light that people want to be a part of that. 

“It’s a naturally compelling thing to get a response and join in with it,” he added. “I give love for the support I get and all the genuine support. It honestly doesn’t matter to me though. What happened in Moscow was just a very small example of the mass work that I put in and the bigger picture.

“At Hard Knocks 365 we have some of the best coaches and I have some of the best teammates,” he continued. “Everyone keeps everyone else grounded. We work so hard for one another and push each other on to bigger and better things. They are the people I’m most thankful for.”

As is often the case, straight after a performance of a lifetime, Roberts has received no end of questions about who and when he wants to fight next. For the minute it seems, he is happy to play it cool and wait for the right fight, but at the same time with the wind now in his sails, he wants to keep his momentum going.

“UFC London in March sounds good,” Roberts said. “I love being consistent and staying busy so getting as much work as possible is great for me. I want to stay relevant and after doing what I did in Russia I know I’ve got people’s attention right now. I don’t want to waste that and slow down. Even if I was a champion I would want to fight three times a year. London is good but I’m happy to even fight before that.

“I’m going to take a little time with my little man and sort some personal things out,” he concluded, “but don’t get it twisted. I’m going to be staying fit, staying healthy, and I’m going to keep on improving and trying to grab that next rung. When the next person is ready to get their chin checked, I’ll be more than ready to oblige.”