Cindy Dandois is a Belgian mixed martial artist who holds wins over Marloes Coenen, Sheila Gaff and Jorina Baars. Currently fighting under the Invicta FC banner, Dandois recently joined our MMA contributor Stephanie Schneider for a question and answer session as she awaits news of her next fight.
Stephanie Schneider: Cindy can you tell us a little bit about yourself, your background?
Cindy Dandois: I am from Antwerpen Belgium, I am a mother of 3 kids, I now live in Deurne for the moment. I am a teacher and an animal lover. I have one brother named Ben.
SS: You started training for the fitness benefits, what martial arts were you actually learning?
CD: I started grappling and added MMA classes in my brothers training center, I really needed to lose my pregnancy pounds. When I was younger I always did Judo and freestyle wrestling.
SS: What made you take your first fight and how much experience did you have?
CD: I took my first fight (what was also a pro-fight) after 4 months of training. I started training in September and had my fight in January. I had totally no experience with being punched in the face! But of course I did Judo for years, I think you can count that as experience. I took the fight because I needed something to push me in training. I am rather a lazy kind of type, if I have no competition I can’t push myself to the gym.
SS: How long have you been fighting, amateur and professional?
CD: I had my first fight in 2009. That’s 6 years ago. But I haven’t been active all those years, I had a baby in between and didn’t fight for over 2 years. I think I actually have 3 years active in total, if you count my breaks. I never did any amateur fights.
SS: Since taking your first fight, what arts have you studied since then?
CD: I try to work on everything, I have been working on my stand up but I guess I am not that talented in it! I also have been working more on my grappling, I had to learn how to submit and fight without a GI, it was difficult because I was used to the GI because I’ve been doing judo for so many years.
SS: Do you have a favorite strike/submission?
CD: I don’t have favorite strikes, every hit that lands on my opponent is good. I Love every submission but I think the triangle is one of my favorites. I love to use my flexibility on the ground, I can set up a triangle in a lot of different ways.
SS: Who is your biggest inspiration?
CD: God of course… with God everything is possible…
But next to God I would say my brother Ben, I admire his passion for our sport. I admire how he can give 100% of his self to fight and to become a better fighter and coach. He pushes me to my limits. I know he is so proud of me and of what I can do, it motivates me to do better, to train hard and to go back in there. I don’t think I would still be fighting without him, and Miesha (Tate) of course, she kicked me back to action. She pulled me back from my laziness and convinced me to go back, to fight for my family so I can try to give them a better life, to show them that you can reach everything with hard work and dedication.
SS: At which gym are you currently training?
CD: I train every day in my brother’s gym in Berchem Antwerpen named Perfect Team.
SS: What does it mean for you to be a fighter?
CD: The fights I do, represents what I have to do in real life. Every day is a struggle. Every day you have to pay bills, pay things and search for money to survive. Training is a struggle to survive in the ring or cage. The harder I work the more I Iearn, the harder I train the better I get as a fighter. Being a good fighter earns me the opportunity to show my kids that they can be proud at their mother, it gives me the opportunity to take better care for them and it makes my brother proud. I don’t fight for myself, if I had an easy life I honestly would prefer to stay on my sofa and eat cheese all day, be a housewife and take care for the kids. The fact is God gave me a little bit of talent, I have to do big things with it, so I need to prove myself, to my kids, my big brother and to God. Realizing things in life by doing what you are good at, that’s what it means of being a fighter.
SS: What separates you from every other fighter in your division?
CD: I have no stress. I don’t care if I win or lose. I am not afraid to lose a fight, so I have no limits. I have other things than fighting, fighting is only a part of me. That gives me freedom and takes away my doubts and my fear. I know I am in there to give my all. To show what I have, God takes care of me and the rest. If it’s enough, it will turn out good, if not it won’t, I have a loss on my record. But who cares? At least I know I earned my wins and I earned my losses. I don’t need somebody to build me a good record by giving me easy fights. I earn my own record. If I get beaten up in the cage it’s because I didn’t train well, then it’s my own fault. I take my punishment home and I will work on it.
SS: If you could have one dream fight with anyone, who would it be?
CD: That is and will always be Gina Carano. I know it will probably not happen but it was my dream fight from the day I started, I guess it will always remain that way!
SS: What food do you miss the most when you are training for a fight?
CD: CHEESE and CHOCOLATE!
SS: What one or two things do you currently do in your training that are keys to your success?
CD: I train every day and I am on a great food plan (which sucks very much)! I try to listen and follow my brother’s advice.
SS: What advice have you been given that you still use today?
CD: My old judo coach Johan Laats told me once “If you eat like a bunny you can’t fight as a lion.” I used to be a vegetarian but for me it didn’t work. I always felt bad, not strong, so I had to change that.
SS: Do you have anything in the works? Or is there someone you would like to face in your next fight?
CD: I don’t care who they give me next. I can fight at 135lbs or 145lbs. I just want to be on the next Invicta card in Vegas. It is international fight week over there and I am very international! I would love to represent Belgium there. I would go more early to Vegas to train with my friends Miesha and Bryan (Caraway) and a bunch of other great people.
SS: Thank you for taking the time to grant me this interview, it is really nice learning about you, you are an amazing woman, is there anything else you would like to add?
CD: I would like to thank my fans and my sponsor LUBMMA who helped me out big time for my last fight. I want to thank my brother, family and friends for always having my back. I want to thank my new manager Jay for putting his time and efforts in me. PLEASE….. Help me to get on Invicta FC 13! Lastly, I am praying that there will come a Season of TUF for 135lbs again or 145lbs girls! I would love to compete in that one!
