South Africa’s Cameron Saaiman (left) exchanges blows with the US’s Payton Talbott in their bantamweight bout during UFC Fight Night on March 23 in Las Vegas. Photo: Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
The last 10 months or so has been a time of deep contemplation for South Africa’s Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) athlete Cameron Saaiman, after facing some challenging times in his life.
After shining in the Dana White Contender Series, the former Extreme Fighting Championship (EFC) bantamweight champion made a big splash inside the octagon, going unbeaten with three wins at three UFC pay-per-view events, adding to his unbeaten professional mixed martial arts career of 9-0.
At that point, Saaiman was one of the most active fighters in the professional arena, turning over on average three or four fights a year.
In 2022, the Pretoria-based athlete competed in four fights, which included one EFC title fight, one Dana White Contender Series win and a major UFC pay-per-view show (UFC 282).
He then made the octagon walk on another three occasions last year.
It was something to behold for such a young athlete as most will know the effects of a high activity rate, coupled with a little recovery time in-between – not to mention the fact that Saaiman trains at one of the most intense gyms in Africa, CIT Performance Institute, where “they go hard”.
The chinks in his armour potentially began to show from the end of last year.
At UFC Fight Night: Yussuf vs Barboza, Saaiman would experience his first MMA loss with a unanimous decision win for the US’s Christian Rodriguez, before enduring a second-round TKO defeat to Rodriguez’s compatriot, Payton Talbott, at UFC Fight Night: Ribas Namajunas in March this year.
After radio silence from Saaiman’s camp, the man confirmed suspicions of an injury before sharing his plans for the future during an exclusive interview with Independent Newspapers.
“When I am 100% healed and healthy, I will be back in training, maybe December, maybe only next year,” said Saaiman, when asked when he is looking to return to the biggest combat sports stage.
“I would lie to you if I tell you what’s next, because I am unsure. I have to sort out some injuries first. We go hard in Pretoria, which caught up with me,” said Saaiman at the Thaiholics Fight Promotions’ DayBreak show in Milnerton, Cape Town last weekend.
Within three years, Saaiman rose to the highest level of MMA, a feat most athletes can only dream of.
Within six fights, he was in front of UFC president Dana White. At one stage, White labelled Saaiman as “the future” after seeing his ability and skill in the octagon.
The reality and rush Saaiman experienced could make any young athlete feel invincible.
However, after his back-to-back losses, the Pretoria-based star has learnt some valuable lessons.
“I will be more patient moving forward. That is something I can work on as it was a massive fault throughout my career – we were not patient enough in certain aspects.
“I hate losing, I think anyone that’s a half-decent sportsperson hates losing.
“I went undefeated as an amateur in MMA, I lost in K-1 (kickboxing), lost in life.
“You know, you always lose, but this is much more public, and so it’s hard to go through it, but you have to go through it at some point,” said Saaiman, reflecting on his fights against Rodriguez and Talbott.
“It’s been a very tough year for me. I have lost a lot ... I’ve lost lots of friends and family this year.
“I am grateful for my amazing team, family and support system. So, with that said, I am very lucky. Sometimes you need to step back and count your blessings, because I am very blessed.
“I am blessed to be in a position where I can do what I love.
“Again, with patience, proper preparation and hard work, we will be back,” concluded Saaiman, who cornered for his younger brother Jordan at one of Africa’s finest Muay Thai shows.
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