After Finishing Ray Sefo, Dave Huckaba Looking for More Standup Opponents
Dave Huckaba took out the boss man when he stopped World Series of Fighting President Ray Sefo on Aug. 10 at WSOF 4.
The hard-hitting 39-year-old joined the Sherdog Radio Network’s “Beatdown” show to discuss his win, his climb through the regional circuit and more.
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On whether he thought of the bout as a chance to beat up his boss: “Never once. … That wasn’t the idea of the fight. I fought a world-class kickboxer, not my boss. You think about fighting your boss, you think about consequences. If you do beat him up, you get fired. I don’t want to get fired. I’m trying to eat. I’m trying to make a name for myself. I looked at it as fighting one badass kickboxer, one of the best in the world.”
On how the fight played out: “I know it sounds
silly, but Ray being the kickboxer that he was, I didn’t think he
was going to kick me a lot like he did. I thought he was going to
be more nervous to be taken down. The game plan went like I wanted
to do. I didn’t want to take him down. I did try a couple of times,
but that was just trying to win a round.”
On climbing the ranks: “Nobody knew who I was. You guys have got to understand where I come from. I’m one of the fighters that never had a grappling background. I never had a kickboxing background. I’ve never had none of that my whole life. I’m a gifted athlete and I’m a family man and I’ve got a regular day job. That’s how my family eats and that’s what pays the bills. The fighting money for me was just fun.”
On whether he still works as a plumber: “I have to. Absolutely I have to. … There’s not enough money in the fight game. It’s no secret; everything’s out. I made $12,000 the other night. What’s that? That’s two months of work for somebody. I’ve got bills. … The money’s not there in fighting. It never has been.”
On his payday for beating Sefo: “With sponsors and World Series taking care of me like that, all in all, I’m easy to please. Twelve grand for me? I can’t even explain. I want to go to Disneyland. My kids are ready. We’re ready to go.”
On growing up fighting: “My uncle was military, but my uncle was an alcoholic. He was always tough. He always liked to fight. He wanted to fight other guys on the street. He’d go to a bar. He’d take me to a bar when I was 13 years old and I would be the designated driver. They would get drunk, and I’d drive them home. But if he would get drunk and get beat up, I’d have to beat up the guys that beat him up. So from when I was like 13 years old until … before I started fighting professionally, I fought a lot on the street. I’ve always had a gifted chin. I’ve never really been scared to get hit. I’m not really scared of pain. God made us awesome creatures. All in all we’re like Wolverine. We get beat up a little bit, but we heal. … I’m just not scared to live. I just want to make a mark and live to the fullest.”
On whom he would like to fight next: “The fights I want to do, and honestly, not dropping names, are exciting standup explosive fights. I want to do the fights that the people want to see, that all the fans want to see.”
Listen to the full interview (beginning at 1:24:23).
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