Bassil Hafez’s loss in his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut does not appear to have been as demoralizing as it might have been for other promotional newcomers. Why? The performance he put forth in defeat was worthy of praise.
Hafez pumped the brakes on Jack Della Maddalena’s run of first-round finishes and pushed the Australian to the brink in a narrow split decision setback at UFC on ESPN 49. He managed to shake off any first-time jitters and established himself as a person of interest moving forward, as he secured three takedowns against Della Maddalena and racked up nearly seven minutes of control time. Hafez will take on Mickey Gall as part of the UFC 302 undercard this Saturday at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. There, “The Habibi” seeks his first win inside the Octagon.
Ahead of Haffez’s latest assignment, here are five things you might not know about him:
1. MMA became his salvation from the streets.
During an interview with UFC.com, Hafez claimed that he used to get into a lot of street fights when he was young. When he turned 18, he got into a fight that would become the bedrock for his training and professional MMA career. The Philadelphia native referenced the same episode in an interview with the “Millions” podcast. One of the witnesses of the encounter compared it to a UFC knockout in the police report. According to the report in Hafez’s words, “One guy hit the other and it looked like one of those UFC knockouts, the guy just went stiff.” That proved to be the turning point for Hafez, as he went through a radical character shift and escaped from going down the rabbit hole of street fights. He sought discipline and structure—virtues that paved his way to the grand stage of the UFC.
2. He pays tribute to his past.
Hafez fights for a greater purpose in his life: to honor his late parents, both of whom battled cancer while he was getting into street fights and trouble. His mother worked through chemotherapy to provide for the family, which instilled values of grit and perseverance in Hafez. Sadly, Hafez lost his parents to cancer, but their strength continues to drive him. “We had a pizza shop, and my mom was the kind of person that would go to chemotherapy and radiation at 8 a.m. and then go right to work for a 12-hour shift at the pizza shop,” he said in an interview with UFC.com. “And she did that every day. She taught me the value of grit, hard work and not giving up. But I was always getting in street fights, always getting in trouble when I was younger and not making her happy, getting arrested, doing different things.” Recalling the aforementioned street fight in which he partook, Hafez sounded regretful. “And I saw how it broke my dad and all the things he had to deal with. He had to deal with this kid who might go to jail now, and he just lost his wife, my mom, so I really grew up in that moment. I realized I needed to do something with my life.”
3. He went from delivery routes to packing punches.
Before he turned professional, Hafez worked in package delivery jobs, personal training and marketing. His academic journey was brief since he dropped out before his first semester in community college. Hafez debuted under the Cage Fury Fighting Championships banner at the age of 23 in 2016.
4. He has a story behind his nickname.
Hafez was initially reluctant to have a moniker, even though most mixed martial artists adopt one that embodies their personality and culture. He eventually adopted the nickname “The Habibi,” which means “The Sweetheart” in Arabic. It is a term of endearment among family and friends in the Middle Eastern culture. The nickname also points to the duality of his nature: sweetheart outside and cold-hearted in the cage.
5. He looks up to fighters who redefined dominance.
During an interview on “The Savage Gentleman Show,” Hafez was asked about his influences and fighters he idolized. He pointed to former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, former two-division UFC champion Georges St. Pierre and former light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell for “different reasons.”
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