RFA 15’s Daniel Aguiar says former student will ‘be swallowed and digested’

Featherweight Daniel Aguiar has a pretty lucrative career option in his back pocket, but MMA is his passion.

“If money was that important, I’d be in my family’s real estate business,” said Aguiar (10-3), who tonight meets the undefeated Sam Toomey (7-0) at RFA 15 at Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum in Culver City, Calif. The event airs on AXS TV.

“I truly love martial arts. Money or fans can come and go. Nowadays, Brazilians seem to like Chael Sonnen more than Wanderlei Silva.”

Aguiar, who was born in Belo Horizonte but currently resides in Los Angeles, got started in martial arts when he took up judo at age 7 and then moved on to karate. He eventually earned a black belt in jiu-jitsu and embarked on a pro MMA career in 2005.

Now a teacher at the UFC Gym in Torrance, Calif., Aguiar has traveled around the world to perfect his skills in MMA, including a stint training with Renzo Gracie in New York. It hasn’t been an investment that’s seen much financial return, but other goals drive him to perfection.

“My greatest goal is to win, no matter how,” he said. “Many casual jiu-jitsu and MMA fans are fickle, especially in Brazil. If you win, they love you, but if you lose, they hate you or forget you. So I fight mostly for myself and for a small circle of friends and family.

“Most fighters do it for very little money. I fight because I love fighting. I’m in the sport to prove to myself and that I can handle any situation in life. I’ll take any win, whether it’s an elbow to the head, a rear-naked choke or a leglock.”

So far, Aguiar has seen two outcomes in his professional career – either he taps out his opponent in the first round, or he loses by decision. Toomey owns a more balanced resume, earning an equal number of submissions and stoppages by strikes in his relatively new career.

Aguiar’s record certainly implies a lack of seasoning when an opponent is able to fend off his submission attempts on the mat. But he might have a leg up on Toomey in this case.

“He used to be my jiu-jitsu student,” Aguiar said. “I didn’t choose this fight, but if you look at his record, most of his previous opponents have solid losing records. Sam calls himself ‘Super’ on Facebook, but I see him as a super mouse.”

Harsh words for a former student, but Aguiar is determined to prove himself in the RFA, which now serves as a launching pad for UFC careers. If he can stop an undefeated prospect, he might very well get a chance to compete in the octagon.

“I don’t know how the fight will end,” he said. “But I can guarantee one thing: No one has ever seen a mouse eat a snake. [Toomey will] be swallowed and digested. It will be a quick fight.”

And if it isn’t, those fickle fans will see if the grappling specialist is able to adjust.

For the latest on RFA 15, stay tuned to the MMA Rumors section of the site.