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I'm a guy that, if I see people running away from something I'm like, 'Why you running away? What's over there?'
A lot of people say they don't care about the belt, but that's not true. For me, when I say it, I really mean that.
I want to defend my belt against all the middleweights that are the biggest threats supposedly before I jump up in weight.
They say to never underestimate anyone, but they don't tell you to overestimate people either, so I'm just going to do me.
I'm smart about the way I move. I'm smart about the way I conduct myself outside the Octagon, like who I associate myself with.
Conor changed the game and he paved the way. He did those big numbers and I'm one of the guys who is going to carry that forward.
I'm fortunate enough that my dad was well-off, my family was well-off, so we're able to go to private schools and stuff like that.
Staying in the moment is something I'll never achieve unless I'm hanging out with the right people and just being in the gym as well.
I'd rather be very well prepared before I move to heavyweight or light heavyweight. That's according to my own schedule - no one else's.
Kiwis, we love a good one out. We love a good fight. This is part of the culture. Straight up. We're a country of a warrior race, the Maori.
I've learned how to be famous and a lot of people don't prepare for it and it's something that can change life for the better or for the worst.
A lot of guys just can't handle the spotlight and the pressure, so they shy away from it, like 'oh, I don't want to be in it.' That's never me.
There are a lot of sports that New Zealand does very well but MMA is a truly global sport and it's practiced in the farthest reaches of this earth.
I just want to fight and be remembered as the best, who fought everyone and beat them. Then the money, the numbers, the records, they all chase me.
A guy like Conor McGregor, one thing I really appreciated when he first got in the game and one thing that really inspired me was his love for fighting.
If you visibly compromise someone or hurt someone, or hurt their vision, you're not supposed to still just stand there and wait for them to come to you.
The wrestling begins before you even engage in the clinch, I've said this already. This is one thing people don't know, wrestling begins on the feet with the stand up.
Coming up in this country, I've seen it so many times. When you see somebody rising you want to tear them down because you feel inadequate and you want to call it humble.
Look at rugby, the national sport, you have guys weighing 130kg, 140kg, who can run like sprinters full clip into each other causing brain damage constantly on that field.
Aang hits the Avatar-state and he has this unlimited power. He enters into a flow state, you know, he's in the zone. That's how it feels for me sometimes when I'm fighting.
I know there are kids who are looking up at me because of what I've done, and see my success and think, 'If that guy can do it, so can I,' then I love that and that's great.
My least favorite thing or my pet peeve would be people who literally ignore the other people you're with, or the situation, and they just dive right in and cut off the conversation.
Uriah Hall, you ever play that game Tekken where you just button bash? I always think that's what he looks like. He's just button bashing and hoping something cool will come out of it.
Being a big black man in China in the mainland, walking down the street, you have everyone looking at you, 'Basketball?' They don't really see a lot of us around, maybe on TV, so they're just looking.
Look at all the champs over time once they get the belt - they just fall off. I'm not one of those guys. The belt isn't my ultimate prize, it just looks good with all my other gold, chains, and diamonds.
I want to fight the guys that are ranked above me, even though I don't care about rankings because they're just opinions anyway. Even if a guy is below me and wants to fight, I'll take the fight if it makes sense.
They don't really teach you how to be famous and a lot of people don't realise that this game comes with a lot of traps. So I'm just looking after myself, looking after my health and making sure I don't fall into those traps.
There doesn't need to be hatred after a fight, because it's all said and done. I'm cool with a lot of my opponents in the UFC. There's people I've fought who were my friends in kickboxing tournaments and after we were still cool.
If people want to take the chance to watch, to see what I bring and try to use it to better themselves, yeah, OK. But I'm not one of these guys who's going to try to be a role model and be an angel because I want to get a Nike sponsorship.
Even when I was fighting in China I met some guys on the local circuit that we're fighting, they didn't enjoy it, they wanted to be musicians and do other things, but they're just fighting because it pays the bills and they get money for it.
Kids will tell me 'oh I want to be like you when I grow up,' you know. I just thought 'nah, don't be like me, be like you,' because first of all they don't really know me but second of all I understand what they're trying to say but I just let them know - be like you.
If I ever feel like I need to see someone to help me adjust to whatever life situation I'm seeing, I'll go. You're sick. When you're physically ill, you go to the doctor. It's the same thing about your mental. If you feel you're starting to get sick, you go see someone who can help you.
Your parents and people close to you, whenever you want to do something or you want to follow a dream, they'll try and stop you. It's not out of their hating, it's just protection. They want to try and preserve you. Like 'oh what If he fails?' From the culture we're from, they want to protect you.
Aang is an Airbender, and he became the Avatar after the last one died. He has to realize his destiny as the Avatar by mastering all of the elements - earth, fire and air. For me, I feel like I'm mastering all the different styles or elements of MMA. It's my destiny to become the Avatar of this game.
Put it this way, people in my position in the UFC, their coaches couldn't tell them to sweep the mats because some people feel like they're better than that. I'm not one of those people. No matter how I am on camera, people who really know me, who know my soul, know I keep that same energy. So ain't nothing change but the change.
The promoters in New Zealand weren't looking at me, they didn't see the potential. But when I was fighting in China they brought me over there as a journeyman so all their guys could whup up on me. Then they realised that's not gonna happen because I kept whupping up on their guys. Then they decided, 'Let's bring this guy into our team.'
Kelvin Gastelum, there's many ways I can classify his style. I like it. He's improved. One thing I can say is that he's improved over his run in the UFC from 'The Ultimate Fighter' and now being a contender. But his style? It's very Mexican. You have the Mexican style of boxing, and he has a Mexican style of MMA, like smart Mexican style.
I've talked about tall poppy syndrome when I see people. I used to be like, 'Why am I feeling this way? What is that person taking from me that makes me feel inadequate?' That same feeling you feel when you feel uncomfortable because people start talking about racism, lean into that feeling, don't just look away from it, because you can't pretend.