For Bellator 289 bantamweight Danny Sabatello, the old adage of “be seen, not heard” simply does not apply.
Sabatello’s bread and butter is his trash talk, and ahead of his bantamweight grand prix semifinal match-up this Friday, he’s been sure to tell anyone willing to listen just how much Raufon Stots “sucks.” With that in mind, there wasn’t too much point in asking him for his opinion on Stots during this week’s Bellator 289 media day.
Is there a danger in overlooking Stots, however? That was the question posed to Sabatello (13-1) by Cageside Press.
“No, not really,” replied Sabatello, adding one caveat. “Obviously in any type of fight with this small glove situation, you really do have to be very careful. Because obviously someone can get very lucky and land a strike and then that’s it, that’s the end of the fight.”
MMA, explained Sabatello, is unique in that “if you do slip up and you do make a minor mistake, it is the end result. You do take the loss. In all these other f*cking sports, these p*ssy-ass sports, you can make a mistake and just get it back the next play. In basketball, you miss an assignment, it’s just a two point dunk, no one gives a f*ck. In MMA, your hands are out of place for a split second, your lights go out, see you later, and you’re never the same.”
Luckily for Sabatello, at least in his opinion, Raufeon Stots “doesn’t really have any expertise in any area.” As a result, he later added, “I’m really not too worried about his finishing capabilities. I just gotta go out there, fight smart, fight hard, push the pressure, and break this motherf*cker.”
With all the talk, most of it of the trash variety, ahead of the fight, it does seem that Sanny Sabatello is somewhat under interim champ Stots’ skin. Sabatello himself agrees, and believes that to be a positive sign.
“I’ve definitely gotten under his skin. Just look at how he’s carrying himself during this fight week and how he has this entire time with fight camp. He’s very different— go back to his other fights and he doesn’t talk this type of trash.”
“He seems a little bit more amped up, a little bit more juiced up, seems a little bit more nervous, but that’s kind of what happens when you fight Danny Sabatello, you kind of have to change exactly who you are. Not just in the cage but outside the cage when the lights are on you,” Sabatello continued. “You kind of talk a little bit different. But that’s what comes with it, and that’s what I want out of these guys.”
“I really believe in mental warfare, I believe in breaking your opponent before the initial bell even starts, and I’ve definitely done that. I think he’s going to come out there, he’s going to want to knock my f*cking head off, he’s going to want to hate me, but that’s just going to play into my game plan. And if you win before the bell even rings, you’ve got it in the bag. And with this fight specifically, with him being a mental midget and a little p*ssy, I think I’ve got this fight already won.”
Danny Sabatello faces Raufeon Stots in the main event of Bellator 289 this Friday, December 9, 2022 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT. The fight is one of two bantamweight grand prix semifinals on the night, with Stots’ interim title on the line as well.
