He hasn’t. And now, with a win over a Top 10 contender, he will likely enter the rankings himself. In July, he’ll have ten years on the force, and perhaps with a second win in 2021, he can take a little break to make a full-time go at chasing a heavyweight title. And while it’s the cliché of clichés, Daukaus is living the dream. But that comes as an asterisk, too, because the dream he’s living is one shared by anyone working a day job who wished to toss that aside to be a professional athlete.
“I honestly didn’t realize how many people were following my story and my career, especially some co-workers,” said Daukaus. “They’re all saying, ‘You’re living out what people dream about doing. You’re living what movies are made of.’ And I’m just like, dude, I don’t see it that way just because I’m so focused on everything and this has been my life for the past ten years. It’s a constant grind of, I’m going to work, I’m that blue collar dude, just going in, putting in the time at work and then doing what he loves after work, trying to make something better for his family and the people who have supported him for the past ten years.”
And that’s the ultimate goal, to give Kelly and their two-year-old son Cooper the best life possible. If that means patrolling the streets overnight during the week and fighting the best heavyweights in the world on the weekend, he’ll do it.
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“I was the type of person who knew what I wanted and I wanted to start a family with my wife,” he said. “I knew what I had to do and it’s no secret – you can’t fight forever and I want to have an insurance policy, not only for myself but for my wife and my children in the later years so that when I can’t physically fight anymore, and if I don’t want to be running into burning buildings or running after a guy with a gun anymore, I can step away and just relax and enjoy the time that my family sacrificed these past 10, 11 years. I can actually gain that time back with them at a later date and provide for them the life that they deserve and that I deserve. That’s my plan.”
So far, so good. And worst-case scenario, if he continues working both jobs, when Carter goes to school, he will likely have the coolest dad of anyone in the class.
Daukaus laughs.
“I got all bases covered so that whatever path he chooses, I can certainly guide him on how to do it properly.”
