I think the MMA and boxing are different audiences. I think it's a different intrigue. There's no reason you can't be a fan of both; why does it have to be one or the other?

You need good coaches with a good gym that teach you the essentials, like boxing, kickboxing, wrestling, and pretty much all the stuff that you need to be successful in MMA.

You really can't worry about stuff you can't control... You need to focus on getting where you need to be and not worry about what could have been and what should have been.

When you have harmony in the different areas of your life, with your mind, body, and spirit, you're just so much stronger, especially in really intense stressful situations.

MMA makes you sore and tired every day. I wonder what we're going to be like when we're 50 or 60. I wake up some mornings and just say, 'Oh, God.' And then I go scuba diving.

I didn't really have intentions of fighting in MMA; it just kind of fell into place. Once I started fighting, though, I loved it, and I walked away from kickboxing right away.

The fact that I get to live a life of passion where I'm doing only things that I love in this world and help people along the way. Life's good. I always remind myself of that.

I started training for MMA when I was 18 years old. My jujitsu coach told me, 'Amanda, you should try MMA.' Since that moment, I got in love with this sport and haven't stopped.

Fighters are my comrades. There are a lot of them with great personalities, they're great fighters, and they should be lifted up a little bit more. I just wish MMA would do that.

Nervous and scared is a good thing, it's your friend. You feel more on the edge, you feel like you're about to fall down the river, it's a good thing for me. I like that feeling.

Brock Lesnar was basically eye candy for MMA. He came in there, he was big, he was strong, he won a few matches, he captured the title, and then he was out. Not much of a career.

I've often felt that it was important to have an MMA media association, not so much to fight battles and things of that nature but also to teach a lot of the younger journalists.

You need to be very critical of yourself because MMA is a singular sport. You have to make the changes yourself or nothing will change. You have to be the one making the changes.

My favourite shows of the year are House of Cards, the Scandinavian versions of The Killing and The Bridge, and my guilty pleasure is everything MMA. Ultimate Fighter is amazing.

My last year of football I started having a couple of MMA fights, and bringing the weight down. It started in the pre-season of football, just to keep fit, and I did really well.

I've coached doing judo, but I've never coached MMA. I'll have my own coach with me to help me along the way and I can't really fail with him by my side, but I'm a little nervous.

I wanted to start in boxing, but you have to train a little harder to be a boxer. A lot of those guys can take punches. MMA, you only have to hit someone so hard to knock them out.

If I didn't positive have people influencing my life in a positive way, I don't know where I'd be right now. So if I can do that just in one person's life, it's all worth it to me.

Wrestling used to be land of the giants and I think MMA has opened he door for smaller, more athletic competitors to climb up the card in wrestling and be top draws and main event.

I'm a very focused person. If I'm focusing on something I don't like distractions and I like to just do that one thing. And Jiu-Jitsu and MMA basically became that one thing for me.

Even prior to WWE, when I was bartending and training MMA, I always had a sense of fulfillment because although not my dream job, I took pride in being the best bartender I could be.

In my teenage years, I started kickboxing, then did a little boxing. When the UFC and MMA exploded in the early 2000s in the U.S.A. and Japan, I saw a way to make money and a career.

There's a quote that says, 'If you know yourself and you know your opponent, you shouldn't fear the results of 100 battles.' Just really being prepared gives you a lot of confidence.

The cool thing about pro wrestling is we do a lot more acting as far as characters in general than MMA. I know a lot of people like the MMA fighters because they like the rugged look.

When you're so physically and emotionally invested in something - like you have to be in MMA - there's nothing like having your friends and family there to support you on fight night.

I didn't and still don't watch sport all that often, but I did see all the Pride fights back in the day, which is when I first saw MMA and I felt that's something I really want to do.

It is not easy to go away and come back. One year out of MMA is like five years out of MMA. When you leave and go do something else, like pro wrestling, you're so far behind the times.

I'm never satisfied, I always want to do better. That's how it is to be an elite athlete, you're never happy. When you start getting happy and you start feeling satisfied, you're done.

MMA fans and pro wrestling fans are similar in that they care about their sports very much. They want to see that you're serious and not making fun of them or the sport that they love.

I accept MMA, I appreciate MMA, I even get techniques from MMA, surprisingly, like footwork techniques and how I move. It's different and unorthodox to what boxers are normally used to.

Any big task if you look at the grand picture... it seems to big to accomplish, so just watch the footstep in front of you... And that's what I do; try and win little battles every day.

Martial arts has been a way of life for me since I was a young kid. It created a discipline and respect for everything. Martial arts has just made me a better person. It's a way of life.

I am excited to join Combate Americas on NBC UNIVERSO, and look forward to building this incredible MMA sports brand and supporting the extremely talented athletes on its growing roster.

My passion's always been about helping the youth, and this is no different, except the issue are 21, 22, 23 years old and maybe even older than that, but they're very young in MMA World.

I cannot say where I will be in 5 yearsscratch that, tomorrowBut I know that wherever you find me, I will remain true to myself with a genuine smile on my face and happiness in my heart.

I've wrestled my whole life, and when I got done with college, I went back to school to become a firefighter. I liked MMA, but I didn't really know if I wanted to get punched in the face!

The difference between me and other black belts is that I truly believe that jujitsu can be used in all aspects of MMA, because it was created to do that. If you train hard, it will work.

I have always had a desire to prove people that looked past me wrong, whether it was because I was a female trying to wrestle or fight in MMA or because I grew up on the wrong side of town.

I was trained by, at the time, the toughest man in the world. Not according to him, either. His name is 'Judo' Gene Lebell, and he trained Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris. He's the godfather of MMA.

I've learned that, bizarrely, I enjoy having a fight. Obviously nobody likes getting hit, but I don't have a problem with it. In MMA you've got to take a few hits to reach the right position.

The people around me saved my life, not MMA. It was people who said, 'You're better than this,' who told me, 'You don't belong in this world.' MMA and jiu-jitsu and training gave me an escape.

As far as women fighting in MMA, I don't like it when the division isn't deep. I don't like to see a woman who's so much better than everybody else smashing other women. That's tough to watch.

I kept doing my own thing, working out with weights, wrestling, and doing other spots until I graduated from high school. Then I made a conscious decision to pursue MMA seriously and full time.

If you're looking to be a professional athlete on the top tier of any sport, my best advice is to put everything you have into it. If you're not, somebody else is. It's got to be all or nothing.

Jiu-Jitsu for sure will save your ass, one way or another. Not necessarily a physical fight but also being able to deal with yourself, know about yourself, and really improve yourself as a whole.

The sport has definitely moved beyond that founding idea of MMA, but without a doubt we wouldn't be sitting here right now if the Gracies didn't come here and teach their style and create the UFC.

I think it's good to surround yourself with people you care about and that care about you, and you all trust each other, and then you don't have to worry about problems and shitty stuff happening.

Obviously, CM Punk is a really big draw for the UFC. He's going to bring a lot of eyes to the UFC, and the better he does, the better it'll be for all MMA fighters as far as sponsorships and stuff.

Do you ever wonder what the Amazons would have looked like in real life? I think in MMA, like, you see it - that warrior spirit. You see that determination. You see that heart. You see that bravery.

MMA and the UFC have taken all of the pro wrestling fans because it's pro wrestling from 30 years ago, just in an Octagon and the fights happen to be real. But they're marketed exactly the same way.

Share This Page