Danny Sabatello Plans on Winning Over Japanese Fans: ‘Sometimes I Can’t Sleep at Night’

Danny Sabatello believes his magnetic personality won’t go unnoticed when he competes in one of MMA's most fabled arenas.

For the first time in his career, Sabatello (14-2, 4-1 Bellator) is attached to a fight outside of the United States as he’s taking on Magomed Magomedov at the upcoming Bellator MMA X Rizin crossover event at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, on July 29. “The Italian Gangster” is currently on a quest to become the best ever in MMA, and while he isn’t overlooking his opponent, he believes Magomedov has weaknesses in his game, especially in submission defense. Sabatello is more motivated than ever to become the Bellator MMA 135-pound champion, especially after falling short of capturing the belt in a narrow split-decision loss at Bellator 289 against Raufeon Stots, whom Sabatello hopes to face again in the future. Fighting in Japan, particularly at the Saitama Arena, is a dream come true for Sabatello. The American Top Team representative is excited to put on a show for the Japanese fans and hopes to have them on their feet cheering as Sabatello plans to be himself, showing his authentic personality. While talking with Sherdog, Sabatello maintained that Japanese fans will appreciate his style and performance.

“I'm very grateful that Bellator is going to Tokyo and having an event in Saitama Arena. It is absolutely badass that they're doing that. Not a lot of people get to say that they can perform in Japan in the Saitama Arena. It's one of the best arenas in the whole entire world. I'm very much looking forward to this. Sometimes I can't sleep at night. It's very hard for me right now to sleep because I'm so excited to put on, not just to show for Japan, but to fight and perform in this massive arena. I absolutely can't wait, but I do need to take it one day at a time. I can't win this fight right now. I can't win it tomorrow. I need to win the fight on July 29th American time, July 30th, Japan time. Obviously, I gotta just chill out and not really think about it too much. All you gotta do is just think about beating the s— outta Magomedov. All the other things are just outside factors that don't really matter. I'd be lying to you if I said I didn't think about it. At the end of the day, I'm a showman. I put on performances and I'm very much looking forward to putting on a show for Japan because they deserve it. That’s a fanbase that really understands fighting.”

(00:00) Intro
(01:43) His path to becoming the best fighter in the world
(02:46) Magomedov’s defensive game is questionable
(04:49) Fighting at the Saitama Super Arena
(06:45) Conquering the Japanese fans with his magnetic personality
(08:55) Aiming to finish his opponent early in the fight
(10:12) Looking for a rematch with Raufeon Stots
(11:17) Outro