It's a little weird: you're headlining a show on TV, and obviously, people like to associate that with material things. I drive a - what is it - 1999 Chevy Blazer. There's no more cushion on the driver's seat, and the tires are about gone.
On my block, I had all these guys coming in and out of jail. When I was 13, I was playing outside my house, and one of those guys came across the street and started cussing me out, wanting to fight me. People knew I trained kickboxing and would put the gloves on with my friends, so that made me a target.
I always have my group of friends at the gym. We used to go hang out somewhere before. Now we're just hanging out at the gym. We have sparring parties where everyone beats each other up, but then we all eat my dad's cooking, and I hire a massage therapist, so everyone is just kicking back and having a good time. I just keep the environment great.
I want to secure my name. I'll fight who I have to fight for the belt.
Every time, you get hit in the face, you have to fight.
The Brian Ortega Foundation will cater to all people who have all kinds of problems.
I better be humble. I'm always checking myself.
Fight fans always appreciate a fighter who is willing to step up on short notice.
I wasn't really a beach boy. I was a city boy, afraid of the ocean.
If we have more confidence in ourselves, we can live a happier life and a better life.
That's always been my problem - the lack of fear in some situations.
I very strongly dislike fear. I always say fear keeps us from living our lives and doing the things we want to do.
I don't like getting comfortable.
When I go in the Octagon, it's no big deal. Just gonna go fight. Majority of the people? 'Dude, I'm scared to even walk through there.' Everything's a matter of perspective.
I've always wanted better for myself; I just didn't know what route I was going to take.
I liked to pretend a lot. I thought I could be anything that I wanted.
What's that song? It says, 'Everything that you do will come back to you in your sweet time?' That's why I still don't relax. Even my coach gets mad at me sometimes. He's like, 'Come on, man - relax.' I go, 'Nah.' I'm always good.
For me, it was always survival. Learn where not to be at so you don't get shot. Learn where not to walk at so you don't get jumped. Learn who to stand up to, who not to stand up to. And then, when I got old enough to get a chip on my shoulder, I wanted to be the dog. I wanted to be the alpha.
For me, I'm just me. That's what I realized the best thing to be is.
I've seen the worst. In my head, I've seen the worst. When I go into a fight, I'm all right. You know what I'm saying? I've already made it.
I want the real title. I can't express it enough that I want to fight for the real title. The interim title, from what I've seen... people get it, and then they take it away in a month. I just don't want to be that person.
I've been in so many street fights.
It doesn't matter that I'm taking a fight on a month's notice. I've taken many fights on two seconds' notice.
Helping people that are down and out is all I've ever wanted to do.
I want to help make the world a better place.
I just want people to realize that it doesn't take much to be a good person. Simple things is all it takes.
Nobody expected me to finish Cub Swanson the way I did. When you see something like that, even I say, 'You're finally here. You're not only hanging with the best of the best, you're finishing them.'
A lot of people think they need the best training partners, the best gym. I started with Vans, Jack in the Box, and a dream, and now I'm here. You just need to have that work ethic, focus, and dedication.
There's always a way to pull back and discredit ourselves, but once you just shut that out and start doing it, you realize things about yourself that you never thought were possible.
I'm dangerous because I have nothing to lose.
There's a lot of times when I shouldn't have been here. I go, 'Man, I'm blessed.' I've had people shoot at me and had all kinds of stuff happen, and somehow I'm still here, and other people are not.
It's never been about an opponent. I don't care who it is. Just throw them in front of me and let me do what I have to do. Let me earn the belt.
I've been doing charity work since I'm 20 years old, and now I want to help kids.
My house was a revolving door. You walk in, you walk out, you get whatever you can eat, you leave, you go hang out with friends. I'm on my mission, my sister's on another mission, my dad is working trying to provide, my mom is trying to do the same thing. And somehow, we're all co-existing with each other.
My house always had at least 14 people in it. And one bathroom. So I didn't really want to be home.
I was blessed to be able to be born here. My dad crossed. My dad illegally went through the border and was living under a bridge; he was homeless. People are making fun of him, beating him up. All kinds of things. After he kind of figured out the situation, he brought my mom over.
I'm a businessman, a company man, but I'm no 'yes' man.
I've gotta check, but I think I'll be the first UFC fighter in history to have the lead role in a big movie.
I don't look like a fighter. I like it, though, because it just allows me to be in the position I am now, to where I can venture out to wherever I want to go. I can go into acting. I can go into this; I can go different ways now. And because of fighting, I can do that.
Put on a camera and put on some whatever, and you're an actor. Put me in a cage, I'm a fighter. Put me somewhere else - I'm in an ocean, I'm a surfer. I don't know what I am, I just do it all. And I want to be good at everything.
One thing I took - you know, especially from boxing at a young age - from my coach was, if you're a jiu-jitsu guy, and you only cater your training to jiu-jitsu, there's going to come a day and time in your career when you face a guy who is a great wrestler, has great takedown defense, and he's going to make you look silly.
I can take care of myself.
I get this weird feeling that there's bigger things to do still, and I can't wait to figure it out.
I'm not picky; I'll get it how I can take it. Submission, KO - whatever it is, if it has me winning, I'll take it.
Not too many people present a good ground game from the bottom. They survive a little bit, and it's kind of boring. But not too many people are attacking from the bottom, hurting with elbows. They don't bring that kind of game because it takes a long time to develop.
My whole life, I thought I sucked. And then I get in here, and I grapple other people, and I'm like, 'I'm actually good.'
I'm not the perfect person, but I have the perfect heart, I feel, when it comes to helping people.