For many of the UAE’s jiu-jitsu national team members, 2018 is shaping up to be an important year given the sport make its debut at the Asian Games in August.

And for Zayed Al Kaabi it’s no different. The 27-year-old has big ambitions of making an impact in Jakarta and is stepping up his preparations with this weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Slam.

Competing in the Under-94kg brown belt division, Al Kaabi will be hoping to go all the way at the Mubadala Arena in the capital and prove he has what it takes to reign supreme in Indonesia in eight months time.

“I just want to give 100 per cent and prepare myself for the Asian Games in 2018 which is my main goal and the Abu Dhabi World Professional Championship in April,” he said.

“I have to prepare well and fight strong in every fight that I compete in because they all count now. I want to improve every day so I can be at my best in Jakarta and that means being fully focused.

“Of course, I would like to win gold in Abu Dhabi. Inshallah I’ll try my best but Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Tour is very difficult as you have a lot of top competitors fighting. It’s a chance to check my game and see where I stand and use different strategies because each competitor is different from one another.”

The Abu Dhabi Grand Slam will be his first appearance on the 2017-18 World Tour after missing the Rio de Janeiro, Tokyo and Los Angeles legs due to his involvement with the UAE national team.

He was part of the squad that travelled to Brazil for an intense training camp before representing his country at the Asian Championships in Vietnam. He also competed in the President’s Cup, representing Al Ain.

In his bid of winning a medal at the Asian Games, Al Kaabi is already putting in four hours of training a day, five days a week and plans to increase that closer to the tournament.

“It will be a dream to win a medal for the UAE at the Asian Games,” he said.

“That’s my ultimate dream that I want to achieve this year. Of course it’s going to be hard as it’s the Asian Games and it will be the first time the sport is being played. So I will put in more time and hard work over the coming months to ensure that I’m in the best possible shape. Every fight I do now is a learning curve on how to improve so that I’m at my best physically and mentally when I compete in my first fight in Jakarta.”