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Daniel (Ninja) Roberts will be easy to spot Sunday night at the UFC card in Broomfield, Colo. He'll be the fighter literally jumping into the cage.
The 29-year-old welterweight from Tulsa, Okla., makes a point of touching the canvas and then leaping into the cage or ring whenever he fights.
"When I touch down, I feel invincible . . . I'm 100 per cent confident," he explained. "I realize I am a human and I can lose. But something happens when I jump down, and I feel invincible."
So far, so good. Roberts is unbeaten in nine mixed martial arts fights.
Waiting on the other side of the cage Sunday will be John (Doomsday) Howard, a five-foot-seven wrecking ball from Boston who has UFC wins over Chris Wilson, Tamdan McCrory and Dennis Hallman.
Howard (13-4) is a hard-nosed fighter who began his career with a string of submissions but has since shown real power in his hands.
In winning a split decision in his UFC debut, Howard broke Wilson's nose - while picking up a US$65,000 bonus for fight of the night. Prior to that, the former night security guard broke Dan Miller's cheek bone in a loss and Jose Rodriguez's jaw in three places.
Still, Roberts is convinced he can handle Howard.
"Not to take anything away from Howard, but if I was going to pick anybody to fight in the UFC, it would be him," he said. "I know my ground game is a little more advanced than his. His striking is OK, I'm definitely not afraid to stand with him. So it's a perfect matchup for me."
Roberts says his energetic cage entry signals a transition from his normal laidback character.
"When I touch down, I'm just straight business," he said. "I'm trying to attack and damage my opponent.
"It's really kind of crazy because I really actually transform. It's not for show. But that jump, that's serious right there. It definitely helps me out a lot."
Roberts, whose jiu-jitsu skills have resulted in seven submissions already, was summoned by the UFC in mid-February when Anthony (Rumble) Johnson was forced to pull out of the Howard fight because of injury.
He was coming off a first-round win in January over veteran Anthony (Mad Dog) Macias, who debuted at UFC 4 back in 1994.
Roberts said he knew the UFC would soon come calling.
He has only gone the distance once, in his pro debut in September 2007, and has won his last four fights in the first round.
"I was 9-0 and I was finishing most of my opponents really fast," he said. "I mean I'm definitely excited but I'm not too surprised because I think I deserve to be here. I saw a lot of fighters in the UFC I knew I was a lot better than. So now I'm here."
Growing up, Roberts says he didn't get into too many fights.
"I had to whup a couple people," he added with a chuckle. "Since then nobody really messed with me."
The five-foot-10 Roberts, who normally walks around at 185, says he fell in love with jiu-jitsu after seeing Royce Gracie "tapping out guys two times his size."
He started training and reading books about the sport. Roberts was also wrestling, becoming an NAIA all-American in 2004 for Bacone College in Muskogee, Okla.
He saw some local MMA shows and figured he could do better.
Roberts just moved to San Francisco to be closer to such training partners as the Diaz brothers, Gilbert Melendez and Jake Shields.
Having held his own against those fighters, Roberts says he is ready for prime time.
"I've put my life into this. I'm extremely confident and I can't wait to fight. There's a lot of people who don't know who I am, but I fell after the fight they will know who I am."
As for his ninja nickname, Roberts says it dates back to his childhood.
"I've kind of been a ninja since I was kid. I've been jumping around, flipping, kicking. It kind of stuck with me.
"When you really think about it, I was training since I was a little kid."
Notes - Nick Catone has confirmed he has signed to fight at UFC 113 in Montreal on May 8. Catone will reportedly fight John Salter ... Bellator has filled out the field for its lightweight tournament by signing 22-year-old Pat Curran, cousin to veteran fighter Jeff Curran.
