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On November 8, Dan Kelly will be making his UFC debut at UFC Fight Night: Rockhold versus Bisping at the Allphones Arena in Sydney.
Though it will be his first official fight in the Octagon, the 36-year-old is certainly not lacking in combat experience.
In addition to a 7-0 record and a stint on The Ultimate Fighter: Nations, Kelly is a four-time Olympian in the sport of Judo.
“[The Sydney Olympics were] awesome,” he said regarding his first time at the games.
“It was my dream since I was eight years old to compete in the Olympic games.”
Since his last Olympic endeavour in 2012, Kelly has chosen to focus on MMA full-time.
“In the 2012 Olympics I probably competed in a weight division too heavy. I wasn’t as competitive as I had been in the past and if I couldn’t be competitive and push the top guys in the world then there was no point carrying on.
“Obviously, with the financial strain of it being an amateur sport, I just stopped.”
Fittingly, Kelly’s second major fighting debut will take place on the same grounds as 14 years ago.
Kelly is well aware of the magnitude of his upcoming fight.
“I was in the house last year for TUF: Nations and it didn’t go very well for me so I’m really excited to be making my debut at all, especially in Australia. I think it’s fantastic,” he said.
“[I was offered the UFC contract] very late. I was scheduled to fight in August when I had a small injury and had to pull out of the fight. To be honest I thought that would prolong my chances of getting into the UFC. But I got contacted around that time or shortly after that and they offered me a fight in November so I was really excited.”
In just a few weeks Kelly will be facing off against another TUF alum in American Luke Zachrich.
“He’s very well-rounded and experienced,” Kelly said of his opponent
“He’s got good boxing and good jiu-jitsu so it’s going to be a very hard fight but every fight in the UFC is going to be hard. I’m prepared for everything so we’ll just see what happens when we get in there.
Kelly believes his Judo background from his Olympic past will help him out.
“Having competed for so many years at a high level I think it does help with the mindset and preparation,” he said.
Given his age, Kelly admits that he is on the older spectrum of professional fighters. Still, he’s not about to let it slow him down.
“It’s hard. I’ve got to manage my training a lot more carefully than I did when I was younger for Judo,” he said.
“I don’t know that I see it as a disadvantage, it’s just something else you have to deal with. It’s as simple as that.”
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