Fourth-ranked Bellator heavyweight contender Daniel James opens the main card of Bellator 297 this Friday night in his home city of Chicago against Gokhan Saricam. Ahead of the fight, he sat down with Cageside Press to discuss this high-profile opportunity.
His placement on such a stacked card, headlined by stars like Yoel Romero, Patricio Pitbull, and Sergio Pettis, and the fact that it is in his home city clearly means a lot to James.
“Coming back to Chicago and being a part of this card was really amazing because they have some of these guys on this card, Romero, Pitbull. And I’m on the main card as a feature. The motivation is always there and it’s always motivating when I’m fighting in my city.”
Chicago is a massive part of who James is; he grew up there, a rough upbringing that he ultimately survived, making a better life for himself. He won by knockout two fights ago on a big main card in Chicago as well and Bellator coming back again means a lot to him.
“For Bellator to do that again, come back to Chicago, and me to be a part of that again is really amazing. Companies don’t really do that. For Bellator to put it on the market, to take that risk of coming to Chicago with all these fines and the things that go on with the athletic commission… I think Bellator stole the market for MMA in Chicago… I appreciate it.”
With James’ rough childhood, he is living proof of how martial arts can help someone grow as a person and find a better life for themselves. He wants to spread that message, saying “It’s really inspiring because doing martial arts has really revamped me as a person: discipline, my focus, mental health. So I’m trying to live, let God see me through the sport and using this platform to say, ‘Hey, this is something that can actually help change your life whether you go pro with it or not, just being in the gym training.’ Everybody’s not going to go pro doing it but the thing is when you start doing something like martial arts it changes the people around you, changes your life completely. You’re not around the people you used to be, you filter out those bad optics.”
One of the most interesting things about Daniel James is a perhaps little known fact: he has been a bodyguard for many celebrities in the past, including fellow Chicago Native, Twista. Asked if the pair still speak, he made it clear they are fast friends – Daniel calls him ‘T,’ after all – and that Twista is a big mixed martial arts fan, in fact.
“Oh yeah, I still talk to T. I talk to him, we go back and forth on text messages. He’s been really busy, he has a festival coming up here in Chicago on the 18th, I think I’m going to go… Twista is a friend, he might be at the fight, should be at the fight. Twista is a big MMA fan, he loves the sport of MMA.”
This line of thought led to James talking about how important this fight and this event are to the city of Chicago, how he gets approached on the streets constantly.
“This fight, this is the most talked-about fight since the Hasim Rahman heavyweight championship [boxing] fight here in 2005. And I’m on this card, and I’m fighting… Everywhere I go people [are] like, ‘Yo, we got tickets to see the fight.’ So I know these people are coming to see Daniel James. If they’re coming to see the fights, they’re coming to see Daniel James. And I’m just glad that I’m able to bring that energy to Bellator 297, so everyone can enjoy it and enjoy a good show and open up their eyes and see MMA is really, really something good to watch.”
When asked if he was told that a win here would get him a title shot against the winner of Ryan Bader vs Linton Vassell, he was direct, “I was told that I was next in line for the title shot… I’m number four now and I worked my ass off to get to number four. I wasn’t fed any guy… I came in fighting the best guys they had. So for me to be up at number four there’s no one else in front of me to fight for the title after this.”
He was complimentary of both Bader and Vassell, but said he’s more used to someone like Ryan Bader, saying, “He’s just a wrestler, I’m used to seeing those wrestlers, I’ve seen guys like that before.”
As for Linton, James seems to prefer that fight, saying, “I actually think me and Linton Vassell is a stronger matchup… We [are] not one-dimensional fighters. I think that fight right there would be what looks good on screen. Linton Vassell is something new to me. Ryan Bader is something I’ve been seeing. Linton Vassell brings the energy, bring the athleticism, bring the character. I like the guy, actually.”
Despite reaching these heights, the loftiest of his career, Daniel is not satisfied with just being number four in the world. He says, “I feel more accomplished than ever. The jobs not done yet [though], so the jobs done when I become world champion.”
“I want to continue this streak man, I want to get to the world title and make a statement, show them that this is what they’ve been missing. [I’m trying] to bring a new flavor to the heavyweight division, some marketing, somebody to talk about. The heavyweight division been really sleeping, wasn’t really talked about, so I’m just glad to be a part of that conversation and considered one of the best for the company.”
Daniel James is known for his fast, fluid, diverse boxing, and he discussed that in his fight with Marcelo Golm, which ultimately led to him getting a finish with an uppercut set up by a series of jabs.
“That’s just my boxing… I just take it wherever it go. That fight we were preparing for a different gameplan… We just focused on, ‘We’re gonna check the kick and counter the guy, walk right through him.’ And he did it smart, he went for the calf kick which is one of the hardest kicks to check… You’re going to feel it. I took some damage to my leg, I’m like, ‘Damn, he was smart.’ I think he was the most skilled guy I fought for Bellator. I fought on one leg.”
This led to one interesting anecdote of how a midnight training session the night before the fight led to Daniel and his team finding a way to set up the shot, the uppercut, which would end up dropping Marcelo Golm and finishing the fight.
“When I was able to get up after [being taken down in] the second round I already knew what was about to happen… I went to the corner, coach said, ‘Okay, well the gameplan went out the window, let’s go back to do what we do.’ And he said, ‘Go throw your hands.’ Once he said that, I’m like, ‘Thank God, let’s go.’ So I came out, I knew he was going to go for the kick again so that’s why I went to the body. I jabbed him to the body to fold him in a little bit so I can come up top with the jab, three jabs across the top. And we had just literally worked that like at midnight. We were actually bull****ing… I was playing with my coach like, ‘Coach, move out the way.’ So I kept throwing jabs, he kept going back with the pads. And I said, “Oooh, that uppercut right there.’ He was just like, ‘That might be something that works.’ I’m like, ‘Ehh, if it’s there, it’s there.’ And then, s***, we end up throwing that in the fight. It’s just my instincts.”
Those instincts have gotten him far and so he continues to listen to them, giving him the exciting, high-paced boxing style he has, “My instincts tell me, ‘Man, just go.’ I don’t care if somebody wants to throw hands with me at all. I’m confident standing toe-to-toe with somebody, throwing hands. Somebody’s going to fall; it ain’t going to be me.”
Closing out the interview, Daniel James gave his prediction for how the fight will go, “I plan on getting it done in the first round… If I get it done in the first round it might be ground and pound. If I get it done in the second round it’ll be a knockout, just because of the gas tank. My gas tank is good, so some guys think they got a good gas tank but once I weather the storm and they use all their tricks, something’s coming. I know they’re watching out for that right uppercut but I got another one, it’s called a left hand.
However, he made it clear that his plan and his fight style are just to flow, “I never look for the knockout in the first anyway – I just look for the fight. Touch him up enough, he’ll fall.”
Daniel James takes on tenth-ranked Gokham Saricam on Friday, June 16, 2023 in the main card of Bellator 297 in Chicago, Illinois.
