UFC fighter from Colorado enters the octagon for first-ever main event match
A man raised in Aurora is making a name for himself in the UFC. Saturday, Youseff Zalal stepped into the octagon to prove to the world and himself that he has become the fighter he always believed he could become.
Youseff always shows up to Landow Performance, his strength and conditioning training center, with a chip on his shoulder.
"I always have something to prove. It's the story of my life," said Zalal.
Maybe because his whole life, he's been an underdog. He was born in Morocco, and he spent his early years there getting into fights in the street, even though he says he wasn't looking for them
"I was not good at fighting. I was never good at trouble, to be honest. But I remember my mom one day was like, 'Hey, your sister got to go after school. Start doing kickboxing,'" said Zalal.
Soon after, he moved to Aurora with his father and brother, looking for a better life. But even though his life changed, he continued fighting. This time for fun. By the time he was a young man, he had shown enough promise to be signed by the UFC.
"I made more money than I ever made in my life or thought I would make in my life," said Zalal.
But he says he wasn't ready mentally or emotionally and suffered consecutive losses. So many that he was cut from UFC altogether.
He didn't have much time to dwell on that loss, though, because an even bigger tragedy befell him and his family. His older brother died in a car accident. He says his brother's death changed his whole perspective on life.
"After I lost my brother, that's when I really found out this is it. This is what I want, and this is what I need to do," said Zalal.
He says he found his purpose by fighting in his brother's memory.
"I feel like I owe him a big, not even success, more of the progress of the journey. I feel like I owe it to him, and I don't feel like quitting," said Zalal.
So, he buckled down and worked harder than he ever had before, training consistently and eventually working his way back into the UFC.
"You need a whole book for the sacrifices and everything that I went through," said Zalal.
All those sacrifices paid off when he fought in his first-ever main event on Saturday. And even though he didn't win, he's proud of the work he's put in to make it this far.
"It shows all the hard work and all the patience and all the struggles and all the stuff that we've done during camps and fighting and all that stuff," said Zalal.
He says he wants to tell young fighters what he wishes he had known ten years ago.
"Stop worrying about everybody else, stop worrying about the outside. Focus on you. Just find out who you are first, the most important thing, and have a really good, solid group around you," said Zalal. "I'm just proving to the old Youseff that you can do this if you are a world champion level, you are a successful guy."
Zalal fought Aljamain Sterling on Saturday but lost the fight after five full rounds by decision.
