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Things can change quickly in the UFC. I lost to Nate Marquardt in my first loss as a middleweight and then I defeated Dan Miller and fought for the title against Anderson Silva.
We bought the UFC when not only was it a bankrupt company that was going under, it had a horrible stigma attached to it. This thing was so bad it was not allowed on pay-per-view.
There's kind of an unspoken rule where if you're unpleased with what's going on in the UFC, especially if you don't have a name, man, you do not want to do interviews and come out.
Anderson Silva, Georges Saint-Pierre, and Rodrigo Nogueira are some of the top fighters in the UFC among many other great fighters. The UFC has many of the toughest fighters around.
I would love to fight a lot more often, but of course it's the UFC, and whenever they feel that they have an opening, then they can put us in there because there's so many fighters.
I’m glad the UFC wanted to work with me as well, and I think that they trust that I’ll never make them look bad. You never have to worry about me with a DWI or doing something crazy
I've known Mark Hunt for a long time, and I've known Brock [Lesnar] for a while. I think that it's a very interesting match-up. I think it's good on the UFC for making that match-up.
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.
Really, it was either fight in the UFC or fight in the WWE. There wasn't the option of both. That was a key factor. What am I going to do? I didn't want to juggle two careers anyway.
I'm generally an optimist, but of course, when you've been with the UFC for a decade and still not had a title shot, there is a little part of you that wonders if it will ever happen.
If Dana White can offer a contract that's not one-sided, and it's not cumbersome to the point where we look at it and realize that we can't fight for him, then we'll fight in the UFC.
At first, whenever I first got into the UFC, I was like, 'oh my God, I'm in the UFC.' When you come from where I came from, being in the UFC basically meant I was on top of the world.
There was a lot of pride, being one of the elite fighters in the world, in the best promotion in the world. That's what I was proud of. To be called a UFC fighter, that was important.
I respect all the fighters. I respect Georges St-Pierre because Georges has a great story in the UFC. I respect all the fighters in here because this is the biggest sport in the world.
UFC, definitely not - I do not think that is a fit for me. I am looking forward to seeing CM Punk's UFC debut, and I hope he does really well. But it is not something that I want to do.
I do have a lot to learn, and I think that has a big factor in everything. Being 19 years old and being able to be in the UFC has a big effect on every single thing that people look at.
I think anytime you have an event for the first time ever, like a Super Bowl or WrestleMania or UFC, as the years go by, everything becomes more polished with promotion and bigger stars.
In my first interview in the UFC, I asked them to throw me among the lions. I wanted to fight the best, and that's what the UFC did. Ex-champions, future champions - that's what I wanted.
I think that every single fight you have is to prove yourself. Even if you're the world champion, the UFC champion of the world, you're still proving yourself; people are coming to beat you.
I take care of Demetrious Johnson, and the UFC takes care of themselves. That's nothing against the UFC; they're a well-oiled machine. They do an amazing job at advertising and making stars.
If Mayweather wants to come over and fight in the UFC, then do it. It's hardcore here, though. I don't think it'll be a stroll in the park. Granted, he's the best boxer ever seen, just about.
For people like me, who appreciate the love and respect you get from the fans in Japan, there was no reason for me to turn my head to the other side and go try my options and luck in the UFC.
Guys don't want to take hard fights, they avoid any challenges, they take the easiest fights and then they get rewarded with a UFC contract. That's not right, that should never happen that way.
There are many great fighters in the UFC; some of my favorites are Rodrigo Nogueira, Lyoto Machida, and B. J. Penn, but aside from these guys, the UFC has many great fighters in every division.
I'm just really not even that huge of a UFC fan. If you go on my Instagram or Twitter, you will notice ... people that I've actually met and hung out with, you know, I'm not like a huge UFC guy.
I love the UFC. I love it. If they had had that back when I was coming up, in 1966, it would have been my sport. Man, I love it. And you know what? Nobody would have pulled the rope-a-dope on me.
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'm honoured and blessed to even be in the UFC, much less be 19 years old in the UFC, knowing I have so much time to learn, so much technique to learn, everything all around to make myself better.
I'm training to be the champion. I become the champion of whatever I put my mind to, so I believe I will be the champion. I think the UFC will be able to realize that, and we'll see what they say.
For my whole career, I didn't have sparring partners. I was frustrated when I came to the UFC because, after a few minutes of the first round, I would feel dead because I had no sparring partners.
Nothing but respect to all the fighters that are in the UFC, but every single one of us wants to prove something. And you know, eventually, I want to prove myself in that lightweight division too.
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.
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.
I'm not sure what the UFC's agenda is when it comes to me. It's their show, their press. They can change to whatever they want to do at any point. They own this thing. They can do whatever they want.
I want people to talk about me in five, 10 years, 20 years, that I was one of the best female MMA fighters, that I was one of the best UFC champions in the world back in the day. This is what I want.
Is there any hungry fighters out there that say they don't get paid enough by the UFC? I tell you what: Cowboy's got the answer. Sign on the line. I don't care where you're at on the roster. Let's go.
The UFC want me as their champion. The welterweight division needs me as its champion. It's been static for too long. I'll win the title, defend it a couple of times, and then move up to middleweight.
I did not wake up one day and say, 'I wanna be famous.' I did not wake up and say, 'I wanna be a UFC fighter.' I woke up and said, 'I want to be successful at something I want to do. I want to fight.'
Becoming the guy with most submissions in UFC history at age 28, breaking Royce's record, will definitely give me more leverage with the UFC. I'll get more attention and more sponsors. It helps a lot.
I love watching 'UFC' - Ultimate Fighting Championship - I don't know why, because I'm more of a coward than a fighter, but I seem to be very drawn to these blokes actually smashing each other to bits.
At the end of the day, that's just boxing - it's a different sport altogether. But when I finish fighting for the UFC, there are so many different options I have. Boxing is another option I could take.
After I started training with some of the best in the world and fighting in the UFC, I started really wanting fights with guys I used to idolize and watch on TV. Guys like Tito Ortiz and Randy Couture.
I feel like I'm the only fighter who has ever missed weight in UFC, to be honest. Anyone, when we talk about weight now it's Darren Till, Darren Till. I missed weight, and people just need to get off it.
I was introduced to fighting by my brother - he's a tattooer, a tough guy - and I completely fell in love with it. I was watching fights on YouTube all the time. I would go to parties to watch UFC fights.
There was a time in the UFC, after the Anthony Johnson fight, where I said, 'You know what? I'm gonna quit making a big deal of these fights. I'm gonna have fun and make it exciting and enjoy the process.'
Around 2005, UFC offered me a chance to fight for them. But, at that moment, I was under contract with NJPW, and I decided to stay in pro-wrestling. It was a good opportunity, but I don't regret my choice.
It can be kind of difficult because of the workload I have at Texas A&M, so I have to find time to study as I pursue my major, but also to travel and compete and train hard for my fights to come in the UFC.
I remember watching Anderson Silva fight Dan Henderson at UFC 82. I had never really watched MMA, but I looked up to Dan Henderson. He was a wrestler, like me, but also a tough, powerful mixed martial artist.
Due to the UFC educating people on MMA as a sport, people give us the respect as athletes, opening doors to opportunities which wasn't available in the past. It has been amazing to be part of the UFC journey.
I know why the UFC runs the business the way they do. I know why Conor McGregor makes a base pay of $3 million. But I think I justify my pay with my skill set, and I've always been willing to promote my brand.