After a grueling session of training, the newest addition to Team Quest, Tarec Saffiedine, sat down to have an interview so that we could get to know a little more about this Belgium-born fighter.

MM: How long have you been fighting? 

TS: I did a little bit of Judo when I was 3, but I don’t remember any tournaments. I really stepped into the world of martial arts in 2003 when I won my first Taekwondo tournament. After that, I started training in Shihaishinkai Karate and got my black belt. At the same time I traveled all around Europe and some other foreign countries to fight in many different styles of fighting, from kickboxing, full contact karate, Muay Thai grappling and kung fu. In 2006, I fought and won my first MMA amateur tournament in Belgium at the Shooto Belgium Genesis. I turned MMA pro in 2007.
 
MM: When did you decide that you wanted to do this for a living?

TS: Since I started training, nothing else really matters. If I worked, it was to pay for my training equipment or to pay for my flight or train tickets in another country. [But] I didn’t really care about making a living of fighting.  I had a lot of fights since 2003 and the first time I got paid for a fight was 2 years ago, and it wasn’t a lot. But the thing is, I didn’t really care if I got paid or not—I never stopped because I loved it, and now it’s even better because I can go further in my career. So to answer (laugh out loud) I wanted to make a living of it since I first put my foot on the mat!
 
MM: When did you come to the states? 

TS: The first time I cam here was the end of 2007, for a short period. I went back home—Belgium—to start working and training for a couple of months. I couldn’t stop thinking about training at Team Quest, and I just wanted to come back here so I planned to come back in the beginning of 2008, but I broke my hand in a fight and had to reschedule my flight for a couple of months later. My fiancée and I went there twice in three months in 2008. I just couldn’t miss my chance to be here, training with the best guys in MMA, so we just went back and forth for a year between Belgium and USA. At the end of 2008, Dan and Heath (my manager) asked me if I wanted to stay in the USA to train with them for good. I couldn’t believe it, and I said, “OF COURSE.” So I moved in with my fiancée in February 2009.
 
MM: Why did you decide to come to the states and not stay in Belgium to train?

TS: Before the move to USA for the first time, I emailed a lot of different gyms. Some never answered, and other didn’t really take me seriously. I can understand because I just turned MMA pro and nobody knew me. But Team Quest answered me right away and invited me to train with the pro team. I couldn’t believe it. I was training with the guys I have been watching on TV—Dan, Sokoudjou, Krzysztof, etc. So I jumped on the opportunity right away! 

I used to travel a lot to train and fight in different countries and I have never been in the US, so I couldn’t say, ‘no.’ Also, Belgium is not a country who helps the athletes, especially in martial arts or a fighting sport. You can’t make a living of it, and MMA is barely recognized. There is only one MMA organization—Shooto Belgium—and they do an awesome job for the MMA in Belgium, but it’s a really small country and not a lot of people want this sport to be recognized. I couldn’t wait to move to the US to train and fight.
 
MM: What did you do in Belgium before you started fighting for a living?

 
TS: I played basketball for ten years. I went to high school and I started to go to college, but I switched schools three times in two year because I couldn’t stay focused on my studies.  I skipped school everyday to go training, so I quit and started working a lot of different jobs until I moved to the USA.

MM: Well, thank you for your time, Tarec! Keep up the amazing job and the endless effort.

TS: Thank you!