NORWICH, Conn. – Fight Danny Sabatello and you will be insulted. Miss weight and he will remind the world. Maybe, he’ll even print an unflattering two-word sentence about you on a sweatshirt.
From the moment Leandro Higo was matched up with “The Italian Gangster,” he found out all of the above are true. In the weeks leading up to Friday’s Bellator 282, Sabatello (12-1 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) has continually ripped Higo (21-5 MMA, 4-3 BMMA) – and that didn’t stop when he got in front of cameras and microphones Wednesday at the host hotel.
“I feel like I’m stealing the show,” Sabatello told MMA Junkie. “This fight with me and Higo is going to be the biggest fight on the card. Not only that, it’ll be one of the biggest cards of the year, I think when everything is said and done into it [sic]. We f*cking hate each other. If I see him before the fight, I might not be able to hold myself back. I might have to smack him in the f*cking face. Hopefully, I don’t see him before the fight. It just wouldn’t be a good idea.”
Former UFC star and current Bellator middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi headlines Friday’s card. Sabatello gives respect where respect is due. That said, Sabatello feels the spotlight that’s cast on him for this one. He plans to steal the show.
“I think the real main event is me and Higo, obviously with the bad blood and the high, high level of MMA that’s about to be in place,” Sabatello said. “Higo does suck, but I’m very good. So you’re going to see a very good MMA fight. You’re going to see domination. You’re going to see torture and you’re going to see violence. My goal going in here again is to give him between 23 and 29 stitches on his face. I want to leave him f*cking scarred for life.
“He’s a guy that’s very disrespectful to the MMA game and I need to f*cking punch him for it. I think fans are very excited for that. There’s a lot going into this fight. It’s not just what’s going on in the cage. A lot of sh*t is going on outside the cage. It’s obviously going to get settled Friday night when I f*ck him up.”
The bout Friday doubles as the Bellator 282 co-main event and a bantamweight grand prix quarterfinal bout. If Higo makes weight Thursday, it’ll mark the first time in three fights. While he admits he trash-talked opponents in the past strictly to get inside their heads, Sabatello says the Higo situation is different. The hatred is real because of the scale mishaps.
“That guy can’t even f*cking make weight,” Sabatello said. “That guy is not a man of his word. If he says he’s going to make 135 and then doesn’t make it, time after time again, that just means he’s a little p*ssy. So I don’t know what the f*ck he’s talking about. But I love that he’s talking sh*t. If you look at his previous fights, he’s never talking sh*t. He’s always respectful to his opponent. When you fight Danny Sabatello, everything is different. Fight week is different. Everything changes when you fight me.”
Higo, who usually doesn’t have an opponent barking at him like Sabatello. But he also doesn’t usually partake in the mind games. Higo dropped a few disses during his time with reporters Wednesday – and that showed Sabatello a lot.
“I got him talking sh*t. That was one of my goals coming into this fight was getting him to talk sh*t. I already accomplished that. I’m already in his f*cking head. He doesn’t understand the mental warfare because he’s a f*cking idiot. He knows when he steps into that cage Friday, he’s going to feel a little bit more pressure, a little bit more heat. That light is going to be a little bit brighter and his legs are going to be a little bit heavier. Now he’s putting pressure on himself. Now, he’s talking sh*t. He’s going to feel the repercussions once he loses. I think I’ve already got him beat. I think I’m already in his head. I love that he was in here before talking sh*t about me. It’s just going to be f*cking great.”
The saying goes that when you talk smack, you’ve got to back it up. Sabatello plans to – but if things go south, he’s confident a loss won’t phase him.
“Obviously, there’s going to be a whole comment section,” Sabatello said. “I know the rest of the Bellator fighters have sh*t saved up in their drafts waiting for me to lose, waiting for me to say, ‘Oh, Sabatello. Big Mouth sucks.’ But I don’t really give a f*ck. That won’t alter my life in any way. I don’t care. It is what it is. Maybe I’ll win. Maybe I’ll lose. Either way, I’m going to get up the next day. I’ll be motivated and I’ll be talking sh*t even more.”
Bellator 282 takes place Friday at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card airs on Showtime after prelims on MMA Junkie.