Titans winger Daniel Vidot to face Cowboys in the best shape of his career
BOOZE-free, meditation and no junk food - Titans winger Daniel Vidot will go into the Queensland derby on Saturday night in the best shape of his career.
Titans
Don't miss out on the headlines from Titans. Followed categories will be added to My News.
THE Titans will unleash “The Vidotron’’ on the Cowboys, with winger Daniel Vidot declaring he will go into the Queensland derby on Saturday night in the best shape of his career.
A booze-free lifestyle, meditation and a diet stripped of junk food has Vidot physically and mentally primed as he prepares for the NRL comeback he never envisaged.
When Vidot quit the Broncos two years ago, the 27-year-old thought he had seen the last of the NRL. He had plans to sightsee through Europe while playing at English club Salford. In time, he yearned to forge a successful professional wrestling career in the WWE.
Amid bouts of homesickness in England, Vidot fielded an unexpected call from the Titans.
In five months he has slashed 13kg from his frame. Once a monstrous 121kg, Vidot is taut and trim at 108kg and determined to prove he is not a spent force in the NRL, starting against the Cowboys.
“A short-time pain is a lifetime gain, so I’ve just pushed through it and made sacrifices,” said Vidot, who joined the Titans over the summer after a one-year stint at Salford.
“At the Broncos, I was playing at around 113kg but I’ve lost a lot of weight. Hopefully I go well on the weekend. I haven’t been this fit ever. I’m feeling a lot lighter when I’m running and being a winger I feel like I can carry my weight a bit better now.
“I actually bulked up on purpose. I injured my pec in England so I tried to strengthen my upper body and the boys were laughing at me saying, ‘Geez, look at the size of you’.
TITANS TO CHALLENGE CONCUSSION FINE
MCQUEEN WEIGHS UP UP GOLD COAST OFFER
SuperCoach podcast: All the team news for NRL round 4
“I decided to go on a special diet. I lowered my carb intake, stopped eating takeaways and I hired a dietician. I stopped drinking alcohol, I just wanted to get my body right again.
“I feel like I’ve wasted a whole year, so that motivated me to be in my best shape to succeed here at the Titans.
“I want to get back to being myself and be ‘The Vidotron’.”
The self-styled nickname can be traced to Vidot’s love of video games. The moniker has stuck at Titans training, prompting Vidot to inscribe the nickname on his mouthguard.
“I’m a bit of a gaming nerd,” said Vidot, who plays his 112th top-grade game on Saturday night.
“I love playing the Xbox and PlayStation and it became one of my gamer tags. The boys started calling me The Vidotron and it has stuck.
“It’s superhero round in the NRL so it’s an appropriate time to make my comeback. I’ve always been a fan of Marvel comics. I’m a bit of a big kid at times.’’
Vidot is so determined to succeed at the Titans he has turned to meditation techniques to keep his mind on the job.
In his 31 games at the Broncos, Vidot scored 12 tries and produced some blockbusting runs, but he has not forgotten some of the butter-fingered moments when he had hands like feet.
Vidot insists he does not have a catching problem and has worked to strengthen his mental state.
“It was more of a confidence thing,” he said. “I’m a confidence player and sometimes when something goes wrong, I’ve let it play on my mind.
“In England, I didn’t have an issue at all with my hands, so it’s more of a mental thing.
“I have been doing a lot of meditation, which is helping me. Most nights, I meditate and it helps me visualise certain things and get my head right.
“That’s the biggest thing I’ve picked up in my career, knowing that you need to have your head right off the field to do well on the field.’’
After leaving the Broncos last year, Vidot flew to America to trial for a professional wrestling contract at the WWE high-performance centre in Florida.
Vidot was told he had the size, athleticism and charm to make it in the WWE. Just turned 27, he could be a mainstay on the Titans’ flanks for another five years, but admits he has not given up on his WWE dream.
“The WWE aren’t too big on me talking to the media about it, but that (pro wrestling) is still in my plans,” he said.
“I just want to focus on football first and look at WWE when I retire. I definitely haven’t given up on that.
“The Undertaker is wrestling in his 50s, so there’s no reason I can’t do it after my NRL career ends.
“I still have more I wanted to achieve in the NRL. With the World Cup this year, I want to represent Samoa again, but my first goal is to do well for the Titans and hopefully I can help us get a win against the Cowboys on Saturday night.”
Originally published as Titans winger Daniel Vidot to face Cowboys in the best shape of his career
‘Relentless’ Hasler unfazed by wooden spoon, axing pressure
If Des Hasler is about to be sacked by the Gold Coast, he certainly isn’t showing signs of cracking, with Titans players revealing the veteran coach hasn’t deviated from his ‘Mad Scientist’ ways.
Innocent Eels caught in mass Gold Coast Titans cleanout
A roster cleanout looms at the Gold Coast, with a number of big-name players linked with the exits. However, the Eels have distanced themselves from a move for a big Titans star.