Danni McCormack

Ringkasan

Danni McCormack joined me today to announce that she has become a free agent in the MMA world the invite champion asked for her release to realise her dreams of getting into the UFC where is somewhere I believe she belongs. We speak about her success with the youth squad and…

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[Music] here with Danny McCormack um I initially reached out to Danny because of the fantastic job she done at youth bringing back 23 medals I want to say if I'm not mistaken um then i' seen there was uh news coming soon so uh I was just uh by chance was able to get on this day how are you how's things and are you comfortable talking about what this uh big news is yeah hey how are you getting on um I'm at home all day today alam's gone up to Dairy to the isk open so you caught me on a cleaning day when I was at home so good timing um yeah so I as of this morning I got released from invictor so um that's uh like you know sad news but exciting news at the same time I asked for the release myself um and it all happened like an amicably if that's thir and they also said that they'd be happy to have me back anytime so that that's really important to me because Shannon has been really really good to me and and Victor's given me like uh some of the best days in my career so um there's absolutely no um animosity between me in Victor whatsoever I'm so so grateful and maybe down the line I'll end up backing in Victor as well so um I haven't fought since the end of October and I guess what was the plan before I had the fight in October was to get a finish and that was kind of my direction from the UFC and uh I did that and then they had suggested before that fight that I get two finishes so after the one finish I hoped that that would have been enough to make the move but um at the time coming into Christmas they said that they were totally full up they weren't taking any more straw weights and I can totally see their point of view um they have taken a lot of straw weights in the last 12 months a lot from the contender series as well and um I I see that a lot of those girls haven't fought or have only fought once so I I don't think they're you know messing me around I think they're honestly full and um unfortunate timing for me so the plan was then to get another fight with Invicta and H get another finish and then hopefully have another conversation with the UFC but um Invicta have I suppose been taken over by new ownership last year and they're also working on a lot of uh new things for the company so they're working on a new broadcast deal and they're working on documentaries and different things so they've got lots of exciting things coming up but like with ever when you've got loads of things coming up and loads of kind of changes and plans it means that there's not a lot of room to run shows so H there was no sign of a show to be run in the first three months of this year I kind of waited out and hoped that that that would happen but um I'm understanding a thir situation why that couldn't happen so again bad timing for me um and unfortunately I'm only getting older every birthday not younger which would be great if that's the way it went but it doesn't so um I had to to make a move I to make some some tough calls so you know as a champion in Invicta H I was told before that they didn't want want to let you go for the contender series um so I spoke with my manager and we and spoke with John and Allan and we thought as like as a team that the best thing would be for me to become a free agent so that it would be easier for me to hopefully get onto the contender or if not on the contender that I'd be able to be available if the UFC wants to take me at any time short notice and also be available for any other strawweight fight where I could pick up another finish and and get myself closer to getting that UFC contract so you know I suppose as a champion in Victa you have obligations to follow and you've got um a 25 minute fight to prepare for over nine weeks so things don't happen as quickly H whereas now as a free agent I I've given myself a lot of options that between now and the summer hopefully something could happen for me yeah it is it is it's surprising news obviously with the champ I would have assumed before even because you defended it twice and you got to finish I would assumed that would have been the ticket into the UFC and like you said you've noticed the St always going in they haven't fought so obviously they're not messing you around that they're they're they're struggling to get these these females fighting but you made the decision which was was best for you in your career and it's good that it ended in the way it did amicably I can't even say the word either I I struggle with it but is going back so and you you look at you talked about being able to jump at maybe if the UC gave you an opportunity look at kef for Crosby for example uh from your own gym he came in on short notice and is now signed to the UFC is that something like that is what you could potentially hope for or are you looking are you looking anywhere in particular to pick up a fight or are you just going to take the next few weeks and and see what's the best option for you like the best option would be if they picked me up now that I'm a free agent if they said okay okay well it just by happen you know we're stuck for a straw weight in three or four weeks time or in six weeks time and we'll just Slaughter in you know that would be the best thing to happen and that couldn't happen when I was in contract with inv Victor um but it could happen now and then the second best option would be to get on the contender series and plan you know put my head down and work towards that at the end of the summer and know that I know I can show up and I know I can get my contract and like it's just I'm just really confident in that process for me I know I'd have to take a hit on a on a like a a less Financial um contract you know you take way less money coming in through the contender but I'm not in it for money at this stage I'm in it because I want to be in the UFC and then the final option if neither of those two things happened that they didn't find me for the contender and they didn't take me short notice it is that I go and get a fight and get a finish and then I suppose the last like the least favorable option for me because just going getting a random fight and you know I've always fought legit girls always so I don't know how I'm gonna get like this random oneoff fight and not fight a legit girl I probably end up fighting someone that's rubbish and then I get a finish and it's probably not going to mean anything to the UFC so like I really don't like that option because I'm I pride myself in being very competitive and wanting to like the best people in the world and being an Invicta I had that opportunity um and the idea of just going on a regional show and having a oneoff fight to literally get the Finish is like not something that sets my world on fire but if that's what I have to do to get the job done then I'll do that so I'm not looking at anywhere in particular I suppose H I'm open to options and I'm a free agent now so I am open for anyone to approach me and offer me something something but it will be one fight deals um you know it will be more shortterm things like I'm not going to sign up for a fight that's in 12 weeks time and sign a contract and then suddenly the UFC say hey and I'm signed into some contract if I you know some like what whatever I'm not even going to go into insults there but like you get me I'm not going to like sign my life away for 200 quid in a ga Hall that's in 12 weeks time or something so um yeah I just need to be careful about what happens now but I am a free agent I am open to options I'm open to people to approach me and but my number one goal is and I'm always honest is to be in the UFC now by the end of this year I need to be in the UFC I need to start making this happen so uh that's where my future lies yeah and I think to same me among others um are you surprised CU I know myself I surprised and a couple of other media members that I I would talk to are surprised that you haven't been signed and and especially with like you said you were you haven't fought since October so it's nearly six months out of cage how frustrating has this been for you this this time period like I'm a realist and like I really see things as they are and I listen to everything and I listen to every interview and every piece of informational media that I can get and I don't think it's as bad as people think it is so like I listen to Paul Hughes um on the out triangle the other day and he was saying I think you know the the original road map to get into the UFC was become cage Warriors champion and then he just got brought straight into the UFC but now that has changed and he said that on on the podcast and I can see that change myself as well so with the contender series now being such a big push for the USC they don't really care about all of these Champions coming out of like really legit organizations so for women it was Invicta for men it was cage Warriors we get the belt and we get um a contract like I'm the first ever straw W and Victor Champion to defend because all the others were picked up and I don't think that that's anything wrong with me or anything wrong with Paul Hughes I think we've just come into 2023 2024 right on the cusp of when things are changing in the UFC and I suppose it's a heads up for any other Irish Pros out there that are watching this that it's not a sure thing that you get your belt in these promotions and now you're in the UFC that it's it's harder though um I think the the climate has changed the road has changed to the UFC and myself and Paul are just unfortunate enough that we landed upon it um you know as it was changing so I think I think that's what we're going to see now like in five years time how many people are going to be trying to get into the UFC like it's just multiplying every year the numbers of legit prospects that are coming out you know it's going to be so so hard to get in as a guy or a girl um it's going to be really difficult and I think that we're going to see that in five 10 years time it's going to look very different yeah the landscape especially over the past two or three years has has really changed you've got octagon that have started moving into to Western Europe as well over uh to UK and Ireland you've got so many other uh promotions as well that are kind of expanding like you said you've got uh the contender series which is another option uh tough is kind of revigor again we've got a couple of Irish people over there so I think it is like you actually explained it better than I could ever think of would explain it that he just came in at the time or you just hit that Peak at the time where it's all changing but going forward I'm pretty sure you and Paul Hughes are two people that will be in the UFC in the near future and you deserve I I believe you deserve to be there in in my opinion and you should have been there before now but what will happen will happen in time um we not only that like you've you've held that together very well and it's with a free being a free agent now going forward obviously the balls in your court like you said you can you can choose and hopefully you get something short notice but that's not all you do as well what I really want to talk to you about was obviously the youth that you went away with do you want to talk about because I just want to say you you're a fantastic role model I've actually interviewed you in person it was one of my favorite interviews to go through your story you're fantastic role model how was that coming back with 23 uh medals it was great like honestly it was amazing like I you know I don't know I I I presumed it was going to happen like I was really confident going over that was it had to happen because they're just they're putting in so much work now and you know work doesn't always get results but it's just the system that we have going um with with IMA and with the youths that I can see them get constantly getting better in the sessions and uh really like believing in themselves and just their skills and their confidence has just grown and grown and this tournament landed like just perfect timing because we've been training hard since last August and it's a long time till you know August again so to get this um you know big your tournament in the middle of that uh I'm not surprised I really am at all um yeah it's it's amazing it it is a bit scary that I I instantly feel like oh God we're gonna have to do this at every tournament because the pressure's on because people are like singing my Praises all week and I'm kind of like oh Jesus I have to like up my game between now and August because August is a world and uh that's going to be even harder so yeah yeah it definitely comes with a a bit of pressure a bit of imposter syndrome I wonder uh you know am I doing the right things and can I keep doing this um but it's not again it's not just me it's IMA it's uh you know Alan it's Mikey it's Richie in the sessions it's Marlene Marlene is the backbone of this she um you know works for IMA like voluntarily same as myself and she's also a part of the board and uh she does huge huge work work behind the scenes and so does Lee Moog as well down in Cork so we have this huge team of people that are driving these youths and uh we we are we're getting the results and it it does just make me so proud seeing the kids working together as a team Ireland like first time ever I seen it in h Europe the first time I've ever seen a team Ireland actually be a team Ireland so I've represented Ireland myself at the Europeans and other the world championships and that we weren't a team we were a bunch of people that traveled over and we all wore the same trackers but we weren't a team and uh you know there was a lot of animosity between groups of people between different gyms between the North and the South even I remember hearing Lads from the Republic like on the Northern Lads and stuff and uh we're we're a whole Ireland team so we're norn Ireland and Ireland together and um that that has been the way since I started in 2016 representing Ireland as an athlete I've never ever seen Ireland H go anywhere as a team and finally in 2024 with these kids 12 to 17 they were a team Northern Ireland Ireland every clobe you can imagine that you think don't get on at the at the amateur and professional level they all get on as kids and there was kids that had lost fights and they weren't getting a medal and they warmed up the kids that were about to fight so that is and that's because they're part of Team Arland and they were from completely different gyms and complete rival gyms H I stood in corners of kids from from gyms that are nothing to do with me and I had a connection with all those kids and so did the other coaches and that's to me what team Ireland is and we're providing an environment in SVG Ireland once a month to create that relationship with those kids together and they're pushing each other and they're working together as a team and this is what happens when you actually become a team you uh get results that's what I think anyway and that's that's kind of what I've been going on no it it does sound like a complete team and like like you said you're saying there's pressure on you now but I think what you've done and just keep doing it is just fantastic and when you talk talk about those kids that are from what you might say rival gyms within the amateur scene or the professional scene the because when you look at they're all kids that want the same goal that are on the same journey and for a kid especially between 12 and 17 to be able to have the maturity because like losing isn't easy um and especially at tournament like that to be able to then go ahead and help their teammates for the next fights I think is just unbelievable I think that probably stems through the system to yourself Allan like you said Marlene and the system that you've created there for these kids going forward so um whatever you do from here is is always going to be good and like said stress a shout out to Marlene and Liam M because they do troan work that no one gives them credit for they don't look for credit but they do so much behind the scenes that doesn't get acknowledge so thank you for acknowledging them and I want to acknowledge them here myself um but yeah like Tre your girls actually got uh was it Tre it was three was it three girls got gold as well didn't they how did that make as their individual coach as well as team Ireland coach yeah like I when I'm in their Corner um like I feel a little bit more pressure and like I really want it for them um because I suppose I know their parents and I know them um more than I know everyone else but it's the same high I get for like a gold and Relentless as it is a high when I get a gold for team Ireland like and I think the more that comes together for me and the more that it just all feels the same it means I'm in the right position and I'm the right person for the job because uh yeah I don't like to just focus on Relentless like I didn't even warm up any of my girls actually one of them I got to warm up they got walked down by other coaches and brought out to the ring by other coaches and I met them out there and that's the way it should be because I'm team Ireland coach I'm not Relentless coach when I go over there but um the morning off the youth C and youth B I woke up and I was talking to Alan on the phone because he was at a competition in England and I said I think we're going to get three gold medals today and he's like oh God I hope you don't get disappointed and I said no I think we're GNA do it and uh they did you know we had three super strong girls and uh I I just had a lot of confidence in them that they were going to get through the tournament and they were going to do it and you know it was half eight or something before the last girl was about to fight and I thought oh God please say she gets it because it be so hard be the only one that didn't like when the other two did but she did she H put on a strike in master class and and she won as well so yeah it's amazing to have our girls doing well and our Jim doing well H and then we know I suppose what we're doing at home in our gym are the right things and then hopefully we can bring some of that stuff across to the Irish sessions um but I'm I I don't I'm not I'm not coding myself to think the technical stuff I do once a month in the Irish session is what's winning all those medals I think it's more providing the environment for three four kids that are the same age the same waste to train together to push each other and then when it comes to fighting a Russian or Ukrainian or whoever that they're able and more than able to to beat those kids in medal that's what's uh that's what's doing this it's the environment you know anyone can stand up there and teach techniques but it's putting these kids together and giving them the right environment and giving them a little push um it's their gyms at home I suppose that's doing the main work but uh yeah we're we're just like wrapping up and B at the end I guess yeah know and you're doing fantastically well like only ahead of you was Ukraine which had I want to say 55 medals which is just off off the chart what's the difference obviously we're we're a small little island um like when you see Ukraine and they dominate so highly are they funded they're probably I would assume they're funded is this their this their life do they go to school like this because I know then there was a gap yeah you like you'll hit a nerve here with me so I suppose the only thing that I like saying is Ukraine had double the number of athletes I think they had over 70 at the you tournament we had 30 so uh they we couldn't get 56 medals like we can't because we've got the most we could get 30y or whatever yeah so um they they can beat us on numbers H which is fine but I don't think you get anywhere in life complaining about funding and uh if I spend the next 20 years coaching and wiing how Ireland doesn't get funded that doesn't make my team of kids any better and uh you know there's there's people all around the world that win Olympic medals with no funding you know this happens in every sport there is some countries that strongly uh push Sport and fund but funding doesn't create world champions and doesn't buy Olympic medals I don't believe that it's individuals that do that and it's the support and team around them and the way we run our Squad sessions one Sunday of every month I'd like to think it's off the same level of what the Irish boxing club team is doing we're just doing it voluntarily but we still are really high level dedicated group of people between the physio the first stage the lady that's on the door the four coaches that are on the mat Marlene and lean doing all the admin we're doing this that at the same level that these other funded sports are doing we're just doing it voluntarily so I think we should focus Less on the fact that we're not funded if we want to put our energy into trying to support Ima to get sport Ireland recognized that's probably a better way to do it we're never going to get funded until sport Ireland recognizes as a sport so if anyone out there is interested in helping with that they can help and volunteer with IMA because it's IMA that's pushing that over the line and once we get recognized we will eventually get some money it'll be very small it's probably buy us all a t-shirt you know so I think it'll be long past our generation if ever that Irish MMA is going to operate at the level of maybe Ukraine or Russia or whatever but we can sit here and complain or we can say you know what we've got dedicated people that don't need money we don't need funding we've got very dedicated parents that they're putting their hands into their pockets and they're helping their kids to go to these events so uh we're going to do all right without the funding and we'll still have world champions regardless of any of that no problem and I wasn't questioning any of the levels of training or anything it was just I my curiosity was how how many like how many athletes did they have to have to get 55 medals and what what poeny do they do differently and like you said if it becomes recognized and it is funded people think you're just going to get they go oh everything we paid for if you they don't the sports Island don't pay for everything they give people a certain amount of money to help them so it's not going to be like you said it's going to be very little at that time and the best we can do was just support IMA and team Island going forward like you said rather than putting energy into complaining about the situation trying to improve the situation to ourselves and our own actions yeah like for example the wrestling Association is obviously funded through sport Ireland and I think they get help running their um Irish wrestling open so they run it in the Irish the the sports complex there at the Aquatic Center and that's 2 and a half thousand a day or something to get that place three expensive or you know what I think I'm even on sell that I think it's way more so I presume they get huge help paying for that complex to run the event but John gives us SPG and we have a full-size octagon so even if we got the sports complex like we're already doing great with what we have so um I just I think Irish people we like to feel sorry for ourselves and think we're like underdogs and we like to say well if we were funded we could have got five more medals but I think we should just move away from that conversation that's not helpful and just say h I'm going to work with the best people I'm going to try my very best and uh you know it is what it is this is the situation I'm in we're not in Africa you know we're playing a sport at a high level and we're going to International tournaments we're very well off in that way that we can do that so uh we should be grateful for what we can do and uh kind of steer clear from the for Ireland isn't funded conversation I don't think is going to like make us get more medals no it's it's not and like you said H there was a possibility of what 30 medals and you brought home 23 so like the percentage of the athletes to medals is extremely high in that case I'm not really good at mats so I can't do it that in my head very quickly yeah I can't do it either I'm after yeah it could have been like 32 like I didn't give you an exact number but roughly 30 yeah but but but it's still what I'm saying is it's a high percentage of medals per atlet gone which is probably outstrips what anyone else is doing but H you've got obviously do part in the four nations actually obviously you said you've got the world you're gonna be there but do you is there use for Nations or is that just more for the amateurs uh so there was one last year um English MMA Runners but they said something about a six nations in France and supposed to be the end of April but it was spoke about and it was never followed up on so I don't actually know if that's going ahead because the Europeans probably took over from that but English MMA were running four nations or six nations competence because they weren't in imaf last year but this year they're back in imaf so they have now um you know as supposed come to terms with that and they're gone back to imaf so I think that will mean unfortunately there could be less four nations in Six Nations tournaments run by English MMA um so but it is great at the same time to get them back into imaf so I think that's where we're at with that but we also have the Irish open so the Irish MMA Youth Tournament H it was in October last year or it was in December last year but it's going to be in October this year and last year we had like six or seven other European countries come to us so we're going to keep building on that um and and hopefully that will give us three tournaments year the worlds the Irish open and the Europeans and if the kids could do those three tournaments a year if we get a four nations or six nations inside of that Grace that's like four tournament but I think that's enough because really H in my opinion at their level they need to be competing and striking in either K1 or Muay Thai they need to be competing in Jiu-Jitsu a lot and they need to be competing in wrestling so they should focus a lot on their specialist Sports and then it should all come together maybe three times a year for MMA they don't necessarily have to keep training MMA every day but they do need to get better at their specialist Sports and now is the time because when they're 18 it'll be all systems go amateur fighter time and there'll be no more tournaments whereas now they can do all these uh other tournaments they can do like the PanAm and they could go to Bangkok to the ifma like there's so much there like for the Muay Thai you know there's there's so much these kids can do so I don't think overloading them with MMA tournaments is H is going to be a good thing I think three or four is like perfect perfect and then like you said they can go there's so many other options for them to compete in especially in Jiu-Jitsu there's so many every second week it seems like there's a jiu-jitsu tournament going on here and just the the Combat Sports across the the country is kind of exploded um absolutely it's amazing there isn't a we free Always Somewhere to me every weekend and I just deal mainly with MMA and for up until last week or the week before it was like six weeks straight and I was like I'm not driving every weekend for six weeks to go cover to go it's just it's just Madness and then you see Fighters fighting on One show at the start and then one in the middle and one at the end you're like how are you do and I won't even drive to them but no the sport the sports exploded and uh it's getting like once again fantastic job what you're doing and I'll continue to support and follow whatever you're doing with the kids and your career in general but um thank you I'm delighted obviously that you were able to come become a free agent and now the ball's in your court um I'm G to let you go is there anything you want to say or any anything you want to put out there for anyone uh to see like mainly um I'm a free agent and uh feel free to contact me and let's see what's going to happen over the next few months mons and then uh you know as equally as important as that to me is huge well done to the kids who all competed in the Europeans I'm incredibly proud of all of them whether they got a medal or not and I'm looking forward to seeing you next Sunday in HQ for our first Squad back after the European so I'm hugely proud of those kids and I'm really excited about this year and what it could mean for my career as well so I feel like I'm a very lucky woman at the moment and I'm very GR for it all so thanks for taking your time and talking to me today no I love that like I said we only had the one inperson interview and I I when it comes to reaching out to people for online I I mostly do amateur H but I just really wanted to talk to you about the youth and and your career because I hadn't seen you in so long and we wanted to get you back in there so thank you so much for taking time out of your day be incredibly proud of what you've done with those kids and of your career so far I really hope you get that call for the UFC as we all are and uh enjoy the rest of your day thank you thank you you too thanks very much for having me on Dave thank you bye