The 28-year-old Signal Hill resident, recognized as the Number One sport karate fighter in the world, considers the goal of martial arts as striving towards perfection. He acknowledges the goal is out of reach, but says one can inch closer to the proverbial pinnacle.

By win-loss standards, Daniels and teammates of the Los Angeles Stars of Chuck Norris’ World Combat League (WCL), achieved perfection this season with victory June 7 in the championship against the New York Clash in Tulsa, Okla. The Stars, who finished the season 6-0, rallied from a 19-point deficit with two fights remaining to defeat New York 137-133. Daniels, the team’s captain, claimed a knockout with a kick to the head of his opponent, Brandon Banda, in the contest’s final match to secure the victory. It was Daniels’ second victory of the competition in the 195-pound weight class. He earlier defeated Jaime Fletcher 18-5.

Daniels, who stands 6 feet, 2 inches, and weighs 178 pounds, won Most Valuable Player of the WCL final and remains undefeated in three seasons of WCL contests (18-0). He is 21-1 as a professional fighter, which includes kickboxing, WCL, and mixed martial arts events.

Daniels suffered his first professional loss in his mixed martial arts debut June 27 at the Strikeforce League’s Gilbert Melendez vs. Josh Thomson mega-card event at the HP Pavilion in San Jose. Jeremiah Metcalf won when Daniels submitted 59 seconds into Round 2 of the middleweight contest. Daniels, who considers himself a “stand-up” fighter, says the MMA debut was an “eye opener.” He says it served as motivation to work “10 times as hard” to be a more well-rounded fighter. “In (MMA) there’s a lot more wrestlers who specialize in ‘ground game,’” Daniels says.

Daniels considers the WCL championship his greatest competitive achievement to date in martial arts, which encompasses combative fighting and self-defense techniques such as kickboxing, karate, tae kwon do, kenpo, and kung fu, among others. “No one can take away that record,” Daniels says of the undefeated season.

“He’s the Michael Jordan of the WCL,” says Colin Van Deusen, Daniels’ coach on the Stars. “He’s the best stand-up fighter in the world.” Van Deusen witnessed Daniels’ potential in March 2006 when the Stars faced the Las Vegas Gators. Daniels, making his WCL debut, knocked out Ronnie Copeland with a spinning hook kick to the head. Daniels’ victory over Copeland brought the Stars within 10 points of Las Vegas at the time. L.A. eventually won the match 134-133. “He’s one of the first people to knock anyone out with a spinning hook kick,” says Van Deusen, who began teaching martial arts at age 14 and has nearly 30 years’ experience in the discipline. “It was a devastating kick.”

The difference between kickboxing and fighting in WCL events is that competitors may hold and grab their opponents in kickboxing. Holding, grabbing and resting are not allowed in WCL competitions.

Without being able to hold or grab, Daniels says WCL competition tests one’s conditioning.

When preparing for a fight, Daniels trains six days a week. He’ll spend seven to eight hours per day working out, which could involve the following activities: a four- to eight-mile run first thing in the morning; a late-morning shadow box session for two to three hours; running along the Manhattan Beach sand dunes; weight training and shadow boxing or sparring at night. Daniels will also walk around with five or 10-pound leg weights strapped to his ankles or haul a 40-pound vest.

To replenish all those burned calories, he eats six meals a day. Daniels fuels up on chicken breasts, fish, egg-white omelets, salads, vegetables, and oatmeal. He doesn’t drink soda and stays away from dairy products.

Daniels, who retired from the Long Beach Police Department in May 2007 after 5 ½ years, considers martial arts a valuable instructor in the game of life. And he feels compelled to give back.

When he isn’t thrusting kicks against opponents, Daniels, a sixth-degree black belt in kenpo and shotokan karate and a fifth-degree black belt in tae kwon do, helps train both youth and adults at The Power of One Self-Defense Institute in Long Beach. The institute, co-owned by Van Deusen, his wife, Tara, and Daniels, offers selfdefense and life skills classes for men, women, and children aged 3 and older. The institute offers instruction in tai chi, kickboxing, and martial arts, along with after-school leadership programs for children.

Customers visit the institute for various reasons: increasing self-control or self-respect, boosting confidence, or learning to defend themselves, Daniels says.

“The greatest thing is being able to give back to people,” says Daniels, a single father raising a 10-year-old son.

“(Martial arts) gave me a positive environment and kept me out of trouble as a young man,” says Daniels, who was born in Sun Valley, Calif. At age 18, Daniels owned and operated his first karate school in Orange called World Champion Karate. He took classes at Golden West College in Huntington Beach, concentrating on criminal justice. When he was 21, he accepted an offer to join the Long Beach Police Department, 12 units shy of attaining an associate of arts (A.A.) degree.

Martial arts teach self-control, discipline, and “verbal judo,” or words to get yourself out of certain situations, Daniels says. As a police officer, he used his training to “de-escalate” situations without using physical force, and he taught arrest-control tactics to fellow officers. Daniels enjoyed his time with the department, and kept a busy schedule. He worked 40-hour weeks, taught at the institute, and trained for competitions.

Daniels retired from the department to spend more time with his son, Raymond Daniels Jr., who also participates in martial arts. “He loves to compete; he’s a good little fighter,” Daniels says of his son.

Daniels says raising a son at an early age has been a challenge. Six years ago, Nyiesha Denton, Daniels’ girlfriend and his son’s mother, died instantly in an automobile collision in Palmdale. He received the news while driving to work.

Daniels says Denton’s death taught him how precious life is. Martial arts helped him cope with and control his emotions. The risks involved in police work got Daniels thinking, and he wants to be there for Raymond Daniels Jr. “It’s hard for a kid to lose one parent,” Daniels says. “Being an officer is a dangerous job.”

Now, Daniels’ job is to teach others the lessons martial arts has taught him and continue to compete. “Martial arts has always been my passion,” Daniels says. “Competition is something I like to do, but I don’t push that on my students.”

As a competitor, Daniels seeks to become the “greatest fighter” of all time. As a teacher, he hopes to open more studios to educate children and adults about martial arts and how it applies to life. The Van Deusens and Daniels are looking for locations in Southern California to open another school.

“He’s a great fighter and a great human being,” Colin Van Deusen says of Daniels. “He’s humble and believes there is a lot to learn. (Daniels) hasn’t taken an elitist mentality. He trains hard.”