Photos by Vic valbuena Bareng/ViewLeft, Mac Danzig works out with Gray Maynard at Xtreme Couture MMA on 4055 W. Sunset Road, Aug. 7. Above, Danzig punches a bag.
Photos by Vic valbuena Bareng/ViewLeft, Mac Danzig works out with Gray Maynard at Xtreme Couture MMA on 4055 W. Sunset Road, Aug. 7. Above, Danzig punches a bag.
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He's low-key and polite, a man who automatically opens doors for women. But get him in a ring and watch out.
Mac Danzig, 28, is the champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship's "The Ultimate Fighter," Season 6, held Dec. 8 of last year. He also won an April bout held in Montreal against jiu-jitsu expert Mark Bocek.
The Summerlin resident, a mixed martial artist, said his approach to the sport entails more than being in top physical condition.
"For me, the sport is more mental," he said. "It's like a chess match, a very dangerous chess match."
His next big fight is slated for 1 p.m. Wednesday in Omaha, Neb., against Clay Guida. The event will be broadcast by the Spike Channel, which airs on Cox Cable channel 29 in Las Vegas.
Danzig is often recognized as he goes around town. He's apt to be found at Whole Foods at 8855 W. Charleston Blvd. for his vegan diet, hiking at Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, or taking his dog Torrin a Maltese and Jack Russell mix, along for forays to capture nature with his camera.
Photography is a big part of his life, and he shoots nature and landscapes. His work can be seen at www.macdanzigphotography.com.
Pretty soon, he'll have a new addition in his life to photograph. His girlfriend Angeline is due to give birth to their first child, a girl, on Nov. 3.
She said when they first started dating, it was a little hard to watch him get in the ring and take punches.
"I'd see girlfriends in the audience getting all emotional and crying their eyes out. That's silly," she said. "I mean, you hope he doesn't get hurt, but that's what he does for a living."
Danzig, 5-foot 9 and 155 pounds, trains at Xtreme Couture MMA, 4055 W. Sunset Road.
It can take months to prepare for a fight. His workout schedule includes running for 30 minutes every morning and going to the gym twice a day, spending two hours there each time. As a match gets closer, he'll go to the gym three times a day, adding two hours of sparring.
Jake Bonacci, his strength and conditioning coach, said that Danzig arrives on time, is always focussed and is a well-rounded fighter. He commended Danzig for staying in shape year-round.
"I think that'll help him have longevity in the sport," Bonacci said.
Danzig spent much of his young life in rural Pennsylvania. Boxing caught his eye when he was about 14, and he'd watch the fights on TV.
"It was a completely different animal then," he said. "It was marketed more as a spectacle than a sport ... They'd market it as a blood sport."
Despite his laid back nature, he wanted to be involved in it since age 19, he said.
"I like sports that are 1-on-1," he said. "That way, there's only one person to blame if you mess up."
The lure of fight money, coupled with a chance meeting with a trainer at an amateur event, lit a fire under him. He and a good buddy, Mike Willis, took off for the West Coast.
There, Danzig supported himself with odd jobs, like construction and working as a bar bouncer. All the while, he was training in a converted warehouse in El Segundo, Calif.
"A lot of times, I felt like quitting," he said. "It's a hard sport to be in ... I was barely making ends meet, but I stuck with it and the right opportunity presented itself."
Danzig took world titles as he climbed the ladder toward his latest title, winning at smaller events, such as the Gladiator Challenge and the International Fighting Championship. Now, he has sponsors like One More Round clothing, Vega supplements and Warrior Wear. He travels to do personal appearances and teaching seminars, like his latest one, held in late July, that saw him in Toronto, Canada.
"I don't have any kind of ill will toward my (opponent), that's bad energy, it'll drain you," he said. "I'm all about determination."
Danzig said he plans to keep getting into the arena until his body tells him to stop.
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