FA: First of all, congratulations in your multiple victories in Japan.  How does it feel to be the Middleweight Champion of the MARS organization and winning three times in the nucleus of marital arts, Tokyo?

Tabera: Thank you very much.  The truth is that I feel very, very well.  That was one of the most important objectives in my life and I have achieved it.  Actually, winning three times in Tokyo the fight center of the World is one of the greatest things an MMA fighter can imagine.

FA: How does it feel to be the first Spanish fighter to conquer not only one victory, but also three and beside that to be a champion in Japan?

Tabera: I am very proud to have gained this title.  The Fact of being the first Spanish fighter to win three times in an International MMA tournament in Tokyo, and taking the title is already a part of the history of MMA in Spain.  I feel very happy about this.

In a bloody war between two European finalists, Daniel Tabera proved that he has the heart of a legionnaire..

FA: Can you tell us where you’re from; where you were born and raised?  Tell us about your youth, where you an athlete, futbol (soccer), other sports?

Tabera: I was born in Cataluña, in the northeast of Spain and my first steps into sports was already towards fighting.  I started out in Karate at 12 years old. At 16 I began kickboxing until enlisting in the Legion. When I was 18.  After two years as a Legionnaire (18 – 20), from age 20 to 22 I trained in Muay Thai fighting.  At 22 I found a S.H.O.O.T. academy, an affiliate of IVAD and shortly thereafter I transferred to Valencia to train with Alejandro Iglesias, my trainer.

FA: You and your trainer Alejandro were/are Legionnaires, tell us a bit about that.  What made you go into the service of the Foreign Legion? Tell us about that experience.

Tabera: Yes, we are both Legionnaires and obviously that stay in the Legion is something that marks anyone and stamps you with strong character.  There is no such thing as “ex – Legionnaires.”  When a man has been in the Legion he becomes a Legionnaire for his entire life.  Alejandro and I served at different times (I’m 29 and he is 43) but the hard discipline to which we subjected ourselves there is something else that brings us together and makes us understand each other better during difficult times and in life in general.

FA: Tell us about your duel with Gilbert Yvel in M-1 Russia.  Was that the toughest fight of your life?

Tabera: To tell you the truth it was a fight without any technical preparation because we didn’t have any time.  They notified us less than a month before the fight. Because it was an edition of M-1 in St. Petersburg which occurred a month after the Moscow show in which I beat the “Giant” Sergei Kaznowski in the Superfight.  The organization decided that I should take on Gilbert Yvel in the next event, they offered it to Alejandro, and of course we accepted. It was a great opportunity to fight against someone like Gilbert Yvel.  The strategy that Alejandro decided on was to strike while standing and defend on the ground.  Evidently that took him by surprise and Yvel had to defend against my strikes and attack on the ground.  At eight minutes into the fight I hit him with a kick to the jaw from inside the guard and he couldn’t continue, but miraculously, the referee (Ronnie Rivano, another fighter from Golden Glory!) allowed the doctor to step into the ring twice.  Meanwhile he recovered and that’s how he was able to finish the fight.  Without a doubt Gilbert Yvel is a great fighter, but on that occasion we both know what happened.

As Daniel Tabera wins the MARS tournament, an undefeated star from S.H.O.O.T. Spain rises.

FA: Was it difficult to return to the MMA ring after such a long time without a fighting?

Tabera: No, for me its not a big change because I’m training continuously and I’m always in good shape. Always being ready for a fight is part of being a professional.

FA: We found out that your three victories in Japan were with a broken hand.  First of all, most fighters would not have fought with that kind of injury, why did you decide to take the risk of not being in your best shape, especial for a tournament?  Was it so important for you to achieve your dream of fighting in Japan?

Tabera: I broke my hand during training striking my brother Julián. In Atlantic City during a conversation with Alejandro and Emelianenko Fedor, we compared our injuries and it turns out they were exactly the same; same hand after a strike with the same trajectory. Fedor told us about his own experiences and after that when the opportunity to fight in Japan came up we decided to accept and participate in MARS.

FA: How is your relationship with Fedor and Red Devil?

Tabera: Fedor Emelianenko is currently the best fighter in the World, there is no doubt about that, and as a person he is excellent. He is humble, educated, and also trained in the military.  He has great balance and is an example to follow.  Alejandro is very proud that Fedor is at the top and that his style is Sambo, which is precisely what Alejandro  trained in as a child and is a large part of the foundation of our style of fighting.

Daniel Tabera's spirit is the philosophy of the gladiator, "by any means necessary."

FA: Tell us about your training regiment preparing to compete in Japan.  And tell us how you prepared for the time change.

Tabera: The training is simple: first we develop a solid strategy and then my objective is to push my self to the maximum and carry it out. The preparation for the change of time is something much more difficult for someone who isn’t a professional, or living full time from fighting. We have developed a system that is curious but effective.  Basically what I do is set all my clocks in Spain to Tokyo time and then follow that Schedule every day. If the clock says its 11 at night…I go to bed and sleep eight hours…even though at that time in Spain its only 4 o’clock in the afternoon and the sun is ferocious. The worst part is that I live right in front of the beach and at that moment it’s even worse having to go to sleep!  Then I get up at 1 in the morning when everybody is going to sleep.  But the important thing is that I arrive in Tokyo having lived on Japanese time for one month before.

FA: How do you prepare psychologically?

Tabera: We firmly believe that the best psychological preparation is having trained as hard as we possibly could.  The confidence that one has going into a fight with the best possible preparation is the best “psychological technique” which exists.

FA: Usually when you fight, you and your trainer Alejandro Iglesias plan a specific strategy based on your opponent.  How did you prepare this time without any knowledge of Korean Myeon Ho Bae for example and then Ryuhei Sato in the second?

Tabera: For the fight with Myeon Ho Bae our only objective was to fight expecting anything, because we didn’t know anything about him. Against Sato it was different.  In the Grand Prix eliminatory only four fighters were left for the next round and I didn’t know which of the three I would be facing.  In the airplane returning from Tokyo Alejandro woke me up suddenly and said, “You’ll fight against Sato, I’m sure.”  Right there and then during that flight we developed a training plan for Sato who had impressed everyone with his lightning quick triangle over Brazilian Leo “Chocolate.” At arriving in Spain I rested for one week…and began training according to the premonition.  One month later we received an e-mail with the opponent, Ryuhei Sato: At that moment I was perfectly prepared to fight him.

FA: Tell us about that lock with which you defeated Myeon Ho Bae.

Tabera: Ha, ha-ha! The same thing always happens with that technique!  It’s a choke developed by Alejandro, which we call “68.” When Japanese TV asked us why it was called a “68” and we told them it was like a”69”…but shorter. And since everyone knows what a ”69” is, they laughed uncontrollably.  It was very funny.

Although Tabera seems to favor the stand up, he is extremely technical on the ground as well.

FA: Which was the most difficult fight for you in Japan?

Tabera: Without a doubt Ryuhei Sato.  He is an excellent fighter who has a very experienced and technical trainer. If he keeps on going, he’ll reach the highest.

FA: What did you think about having to fight against another European in the finals of the tournament?  Where you familiar with Rafik?

Tabera: We had seen him fight the Dutchman in the previous round and it was clear that he is a very good grappler.  I concentrated on defending against his attacks and tire him. It was a very tough fight.

FA: What is the most difficult thing about being an athlete, especially an MMA fighter? The discipline?

Tabera: Without a doubt, discipline is everything.  A fighter needs discipline to train, discipline to eat properly, discipline to not go out and party, discipline to do what is right during a fight.  I think that in the end its all reduced to self discipline.

FA: What is the most important quality to be a high caliber fighter?  What is the roll of mental strength, technical, physical?

Tabera: Right now all high caliber fighters are excellent technically and have an impressive physical level.  That is no longer the goal.  Nowadays it’s the starting point.  Alejandro always insists on the same thing: The mind is the most important in a fighter. And there is no doubt that the mind becomes stronger with discipline.

FA: Why do you think that you have been able to maintain a perfect record until now?

Tabera: I am undefeated and I’ll try to keep it that way, but the day of defeat could evidently arrive.

FA: Who would you like to fight next?

Tabera: I want them to be better opponents each time. I want to fight against the best in the world in my weight class.

FA: What is you next goal or dream?

Tabera: My goal is to be the best Light Heavyweight MMA fighter in the World.

In Spanish >>