Obviously winning is what's most important, but I need to show people that I've improved.
I found wrestling when I was 11 years old. About two years later, I convinced my mom to let me rent my first UFC tape. I was fascinated by the sport.
I train great outside of camp but then once camp starts, it's just a constant weight cut.
Looking back in hindsight, I really stunted my growth as a fighter by constantly cutting weight all the time.
When you train outside of camp, it's fun, I'm playing around, I'm working hard but I'm having fun. When I get into that camp it's 10 weeks of tunnel vision on that opponent, you're trying to work on your strengths and weaknesses, really trying to get better in different areas before the fight.
In every fight, I have a spot that I could lose the first round. When do the oddsmakers ever like me? But it's not a math equation, it's a fight.
When you can't do road work for a week-and-a-half, that's really hard on your weight cut.
I'm a big guy; people don't realize that.
I'm not a small guy. I can get up to 205 pounds and be athletic and be in shape.
There's only one guy at 170 that's bigger than me, and that's Darren Till.
I think the Eddie Alvarez fight is a good fight that makes sense - a couple Italian guys throwing down. I've got nothing but respect for the guy.
I'm in this sport to test myself. I want to see how far I can take this thing.
I'm a huge lightweight.
Bar none, hands down, no matter what division I'm in, I am one of the best fighters in the world.
If you win one fight in the UFC, you're good. If you win two in a row, you're great.
I always want to fight guys that want to test me.
I was the second guy to submit Jim Miller, so I'm up there in catching guys that have been deemed uncatchable.
Cutting weight is always rough, especially for guys like myself that make a significant cut to make a number.
It's never easy to watch. It's never great to see your friend or teammate put himself through hell.
What if I could just focus on fighting? What would that be like? What would it be like to take advantage of all the resources this place has to offer? Because you're not doing it when you're cutting weight all the time.
I'm a blue collar guy from Spokane, Washington, who was raised to just be respectful, be a sportsman, and just speak with your performances, and I'm glad that I'm back to my old ways.
I got as high as being ranked 7th at lightweight and I really believe this deep down to my bones that I was really only fighting to half my potential.
I really feel like going up to 170, I'm going to really be able to show my skill set.
I know deep down I'm destined to be a world champion and maybe it's to be attained in the most prestigious division in the UFC at welterweight.
I was still part of that trend where it was see how low you can get, get as small as you can get, be the biggest guy in your weight class, and it started to burn me out.
Whenever I get matched up with a guy, I always look at who beat him and I've got to be better than those guys.
170 is not a popularity contest. 170 is a working man's weight class where you work hard, you get your rewards whereas at lightweight, it wasn't the same. You could work as hard as you want, win as many fights as you want, and there's no promise what you're going to get out of it.
When I first got into the sport it was all about who could cut the most weight, who could be the biggest on fight night. That's the same era when you're sparring 10 five minute rounds, new partner every two and a half minutes, that era of just really hard weight cutting and really hard full contact training.
Dumb and tough goes a long way in this sport but to be elite, you've got to be smarter.
I'm letting my coaches take the reins more. Letting them make the decisions on what's going to be a hard practice, what's not going to be a hard practice and also this weight cutting thing. It's the best decision I've made in my entire career.
I'm not here to be mediocre. I'm not in the UFC just to get a paycheck and make a living. That's really not what I'm here for. If I wanted to make money, I would have gotten out of the sport and done something else. I want to be a world champion.
My love for mixed martial arts will never waver.
Anytime I've won a fight and asked for an opponent, I've usually gotten it, and that's because it's all well thought-out.
I just don't throw things against the wall that aren't gonna stick.
I want to be great, I want to fight the best guys, I want to test myself, I want see what my limits are. I don't think a lot of guys in this sport really have that mentality.
I think Gilbert Burns is going to become my greatest rival.
Going to fight Gilbert Burns while not training jiu-jitsu, I mean, that's just stupid.
I finish every fight. And if I don't finish and go to a decision, I win 10-8 rounds. How many guys do you know in the lightweight division who've had fights where they have gotten two 10-8 rounds scored? Think about it. I'm a winner.
I want a shot at being an analyst. I love watching 'UFC Tonight.' I'm very critical of all the new fighters they have come on there.
I at least have to cut my hair. I can't do the whole man bun, funky long hair thing anymore.
I am a nerd about this sport. I know guys' records, who they fought, how they win, who they're married to, where they eat dinner, what kind of car do they drive. I'm a big nerd of the sport, so it would be easy for me to sit in front of a table of guys and just talk about fighting.
I'm a finisher, but he's still Diego Sanchez. He's a wild man. I'm very blessed to come out with the win.
Give Tony Ferguson a title fight. He needs it!
I'm the type of guy where I feel like if you throw me in against the guy that's gonna be my hardest match-up, I think that's gonna bring out the best in me, and I know that the best of me can beat anybody on any given day to become the world champion.
As time has gone on, I've gotten bigger and bigger. My body composition has changed.
I think Neil Magny gets picked on a lot because people don't think he is that good. I like the guy a lot.
There was once a time when I was the hip necklace wearing guy.
All I've got to say is I'm in the top 15, I'm not taking any backwards steps.