When Nigerians in the UFC are the subject matter, the three names that spring to mind are Israel Adesanya, Kamaru Usman and Sodiq Yusuff.
One-third of the Nigerian mixed martial arts holy trinity, Sodiq Yusuff spoke on his career so far, including his journey and aspirations for the UFC featherweight division.
In an exclusive interview with Pulse Sports, the 29-year-old made personal revelations about the origin of his MMA career, making his UFC debut while grieving and his ambitions in the sport amongst other things.
Who is Sodiq Yusuff?
Sodiq Olamide Yusuff is a Nigerian-born mixed martial artist who currently competes in the featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighters Championship, better known simply as the UFC.
‘Super Sodiq’ as he’s affectionately known gave some insight into his ancestry, “I was born in Lagos Nigeria, I currently live in the US now but I was born in Lagos. My dad is from Ibadan while my mum was also born in Lagos.”
On his MMA career, the Nigerian credited Anime for his interest in combat during his formative years, “the first time I saw MMA on Tv I knew that was what I wanted to do. It has been my dream since I was a kid.”
“I am a big anime fan, a real anime nerd so when I first saw the UFC fighters, I thought these are real-life anime characters, training to get stronger and working their way to becoming the best fighters in the world. I told my mum right away, that's what I want to do when I grow up,” Yusuf said.
Mum’s role in his career so far
As any African child can imagine, convincing an African mother (more specifically Yoruba in this case) to let you fight for a living could be more difficult than fighting itself.
Sodiq spoke on the stages of getting his mum involved, “I had to slowly work her into being more and more comfortable. Because I started up with wrestling and she was a little bit, but slowly she started getting more comfortable and she didn't watch me fight until my pro debut.”
“I had 11 fights and she was scared she would never come, and when I made my pro debut, I didn't even expect her to be there cos she never came.”
“After I won I was walking to the backstage area after my win and I just heard someone shout ‘OLAMIDE’ and the only person that calls me that is my Mum so I knew right away.”
“I was like, ‘What is my mum here?’ I was so happy man, that was the first time she ever came to watch me fight. I know it's very hard for her to watch but she watches me and is always supportive.”