McDaniel to start a professional martial arts career at weekend
MIXED MARTIAL ARTS: Former Warwick basketballer Michael McDaniel will fight at the Southport RSL tonight as he aims to forge a professional career in his new sport.
McDaniel will be the second of 10 fights from 7pm in mixed martial arts cage fighting.
At age 46, he will give two decades in age to his opponent Simon Carson but believes his age is an advantage.
"I have a lot of life experiences and have been there, done that, in top-flight sport through basketball,” he said.
Tonight's fight will be the first in professional ranks for McDaniel and Carson.
"I believe I can make it in the professional ranks in Australia or overseas, the bigger money is overseas,” he said.
McDaniel describes mixed martial arts as a combination of boxing, karate, jiu jitsu, judo and taekwondo.
"We have three five-minute rounds in a fight,” he said.
McDaniel worked for six years as a youth worker in Warwick and was a boarding supervisor at The Scots PGC College but now lives in Ipswich.
He is now refereeing basketball at the Auchenflower Basketball Stadium in Brisbane and is aiming to one day referee in the Queensland Basketball League.
