Mack ‘Da Menace’ Talks Upset Over Fabiano

By Frank Curreri

So much for game plans. After agreeing to face Wagnney Fabiano on just two weeks notice, the last thing Mackens Semerzier wanted was to get taken down and have the decorated Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt on top of him in the Octagon. Yet that worst-case scenario is exactly what transpired when the two fighters clashed on Saturday, and a mere 62 seconds later, the heavy underdog with one of the more unique names in MMA has fans nationwide buzzing about his perfectly executed triangle choke. Now unbeaten in seven pro contests, the 29-year-old U.S. Marine spoke about the biggest win of his young career – and arguably one of the biggest upsets in MMA so far this year – and how knocking off Fabiano has a bittersweet feel to it.

WEC: Obviously Wagnney Fabiano is a decorated BJJ guy, a third-degree black belt, and he trains under Andre Pederneiras. You’re a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Frank Cucci and Pedro Sauer. Was Plan A to stuff Fabiano’s takedowns and keep the fight standing?
Mackens: “Definitely. In every fight you’d rather be on the top than the bottom. I definitely did not want to be on the bottom. Initially (when Fabiano took him down) I went into auto-pilot. I stay calm in those situations so I think a lot clearer. I wanted to get back to my feet but he didn’t give me the opportunity. He didn’t give me enough space to get back to my feet. I didn’t want to just jump up and end up back on the ground or absorb any unnecessary punishment. But I was comfortable (on my back).

“If it was standing up, I wanted to be striking, but I didn’t want to come forward with my strikes. I wanted to burn a little time and get him into the second or third round where I could start punching on him, whether it be standing up or on the ground. Just try to grind him out.”

WEC: Coming into the fight, did you feel like you had the goods to submit him?
Mackens: “Honestly, when I first went out I wasn’t thinking about submitting him. When I found out two weeks ago that I would be fighting him, my emphasis on the ground was, (if you get on your back), get back to your feet. It was to control him on the ground so I don’t take damage and get back to my feet. It was never to really be offensive from the bottom position. Because we figured, he’s probably been in this position so many times, he’s probably going to pass (the guard) and gain an advantageous position. So I didn’t really want to play too much on the bottom. Even on top, I wanted to be very careful and if he started moving around too much I was going to disengage. But it worked out for me. I have nothing to complain about. I’m happy with the submission, that’s for sure.”

WEC: What did Miguel Torres, one of your training partners, tell you before the fight?
Mackens: “He told me this is my time. Me and him talked about it awhile ago. In the back he was telling me the same thing: ‘Man, this is your chance. This is what you’ve been training for all of your life – this one moment. When you started wrestling at 14 years old, all the way until yesterday when you were cutting weight, all of that was for this one moment, this 15 minutes. Go focus, let it all hang out, don’t hold back.’

“My jiu-jitsu instructor was telling me, ‘Don’t be scared of this guy’s jiu-jitsu. You’re good, too.’ And they told me to hurt him wherever the fight goes. ‘Punish him, wear him out.’ You know, I had a five-fight contract but I looked at it as a one-shot deal. If I don’t win this, I’m done. It was make or break for me. I guess that’s why it worked out the way it did.”

WEC: Immediately after the fight you looked pretty cavalier, not like someone who had pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the year in MMA. Is that your normal demeanor after a victory?
Mackens: “I guess that’s how I normally am. I don’t know, man, I almost feel like I’m robbing myself of the enjoyment of winning fights. I think I’ve celebrated once after knocking a guy out, but every other time when I’ve submitted somebody I’ve been real casual about it. Maybe it’s because you can see it coming. You have the submission on, or the triangle locked on, and you know in your head, ‘This guy is gonna tap.’ It’s not like a knockout where you hit him and he falls and it’s a surprise. So I’m usually calm and reserved after a fight.”

WEC: Did you have an opportunity to speak with Wagnney after the fight, outside of the cage?
Mackens: “Just inside the cage. I saw him a lot before and we said ‘hi’ to each other in the hallways. He’s a real nice guy, one of my idols and one of the guys I looked up to. When I was fighting amateur I used to watch his fights and think, ‘Man, who’s going to beat this guy?’ I respected his skills that much.”

WEC: What does beating Wagnney Fabiano do for your career?
Mackens: “It’s a double-edged sword. It puts me just below some of the top-tier guys like Jose Aldo, Urijah Faber, Leonard Garcia, Rafael Assuncao and Mike Brown. And that would be great if I had been fighting for a long time and had a whole bunch of fights … but I really just want to enjoy the ride and fight guys that on paper are at my level. I’m happy for the win but it also puts me in a position where I just can’t find the “normal” guys and people will be satisfied with that if I win. People want to see me fight the better guys now.”

WEC: What kind of reaction did you get from fans and your fighter peers in San Antonio and since you’ve arrived home in Virginia Beach?
Mackens: “Everyone has been congratulating me and I’m getting a lot of calls from the press for interviews and stuff. There are a lot more people who want to talk to me. But I haven’t gone out and been recognized in public. I’m not in that point … Fighters always know that no matter what the odds are, when the fight starts it’s 50/50. A lot of the fans don’t understand that. I always laugh it off because people who don’t know you start saying, ‘Fabiano is going to win by whatever he wants.’

WEC: You still have a ways to go before fighting for the title. Do you feel like you have the makings of a future champion?
Mackens: “I think I have what it takes. Athletically I’m getting close to my prime and I have a good team behind me and it’s something that I want. I train hard and I’m able to stay calm in bad situations, and that’s because of the drilling and all the great work that I do with my team.”