UAE: This Emirati UFC fighter gave up chocolates to fight like a gladiator

The first thing that strikes you when you meet Mohammad Yahya is his steely-eyed expression. As he walked into a hall for media interviews after a sparring session at the UFC Gym in Dubai Marina, Yahya was at ease in front of the camera, switching effortlessly into English after taking every question in Arabic.

For a man who has known nothing other than fighting since the age of 14, it was astonishing to see him break into a smile as he pumped his fists and posed with an Arabic reporter.

Having made history last year as the first UAE fighter in the UFC, Yahya now hopes to bring smiles to Emirati faces at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi this Saturday by winning his bout against Brazilian Kaue Fernandes.

During an interview with City Times, Yahya spoke about the sacrifices he had to make to reach the UFC, the world’s biggest platform for Mixed Martial Arts (MMA).

We are all set for your second bout as the first Emirati fighter in the UFC. How excited are you?

I am very excited because the last fight didn’t go as planned; I came up short by a few points; obviously that haunts me because I was so close to winning. Now my preparations are really good, I had a very strong training camp. It’s been more than a year now, I am ready. I have a very good opponent, so it’s going to be great to showcase my skills in front of my people.

Fighting in front of your own people, how good is it to compete on the home turf?

Obviously, it’s great, you get the home advantage, I have fought in these settings many times (in other events) before. He (Kaue Fernandes) is coming into my territory. I am not going to let him leave my land with a win over me.

How many months of preparations are needed to be ready for an event like the UFC Fight Night?

I never stop training, I am always in training. Since I was 14, I never really took time off training. When I got a few injuries, that’s the only time I stopped. I would say 12 weeks (of rigorous training) are more than enough to be in the best shape of your life and [be] ready [for a bout].

Youngsters who dream of becoming elite fighters would be curious to know your training schedule…

So obviously it’s a sport that requires a lot of sacrifices and a lot of lonely nights. I wake up in the morning, I have my breakfast, my first training [session] is around 9.30, before that I warm up and then I have our wrestling or boxing, sparring [time]. Then I go home and rest, eat, sleep and then go back to the gym and do specific trainings that are needed. So it’s a lot of hard work, a lot of pressure on the body. Sometimes, you don’t want to wake up in the morning and go to training, but that discipline is needed when you are at the highest level... you turn into a machine basically.

Combat sport is not for the faint-hearted. So as a young kid, what attracted you to this brutal sport? What was your parents’ reaction when they came to know that you want to fight inside a cage for a living?

My parents were actually happy when I got into the sport because they saw a lot of changes in me. I became more disciplined, they saw how focused I was in the sport. Then they saw me win the amateur fights and they knew this was a sport I wanted to do and this was the career I wanted to build. They are very happy for me.

I have always told them that I was going to be in the UFC. And now I am finally here. My last fight didn’t go well, so this fight, as you can see, is the biggest fight of my life. I am going to do everything I can. I have already [made] a lot of sacrifices, I don’t go out with friends. When I was 14 and my friends were enjoying the weekends, I was out on the road running, doing shadow fights. When everyone was out enjoying the weekend, I was watching fights on TV, and training, and learning. Now also [on] the weekends, instead of going out with friends, I choose to recover, get a massage, some ice baths, and sauna [sessions] to get ready for the next week of training.

Tell us about your diet?

Well, it’s very strict, you know, two weeks before the fight I have to lose 10 kilos. [I consume a] lot of protein, no chocolates or cakes, even though I love sweets and chocolates. It’s hard to stay away from that mostly but hopefully when I get my first win on Saturday, I will eat what I want to eat for a day.

Any sporting background in the family?

Not really. No one in my family is into sports. Not even my brother. So I am the first one from my family to get into serious sports.

So you also became the first one from the UAE to get into UFC. What would be your advice to young Emirati fighters?

When I started I was just 14. I always told myself I would go into the UFC. That was my goal and I never gave up. I pushed myself, I knew it was never going to be easy, there would be a lot of ups and downs, but I kept going and now I am here. So I will tell these kids to have those dreams, it’s a lot of sacrifice and hard work. Even if you are not very talented, but if you work very hard, you can reach your goals. If I can do this, anyone else can.

A lot of young fighters have now emerged from the Arab region, including many female fighters. How good is it to see the sport you love so much become so popular?