If you lose three or four in a row, people start talking about retirement. They are not used to this sport like they are used to tennis. If you take a look at how many times Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer lost, it's all part of the game. Soccer is no different: teams go through bad times and then rise again.
Lyoto Machida
If you have a dream in your life, go hard. It's possible.
I think we both matured together in this sport, so I think fight between Michael Bisping and myself would mean a lot.
Separating your profession from friendship is very difficult.
The way I stand and my posture really complicates my opponents; they don't understand it and don't know what to do about. The way I stand there in front of them really throws them off.
My father is a master in karate. He always taught me the philosophy of Karate. When I'm talking about philosophy, I mean respect to willpower, self confidence. Those qualities, I think it's very important, not just for fighting, but for any person.
I focus on my opponents the same way whether they are a champion or not.
Right after my fight against Luke Rockhold, I had surgery on my left hand. I just took out some fragments from back then. Too many training, and I had some fragments in my hand.
I feel that not only have I been out there promoting my style of karate, but just promoting the traditional martial arts, and it makes me very happy.
If I had a choice, I'd rather not fight someone from Brazil, but as a professional, I couldn't say no.
I live my life - I walk the right path - but I can't be like, 'Oh, I'm scared of this or that.'
My dad taught me; Mr. Steven Seagal taught me, also.
My father is a Japanese Shotokan karate master, so I have been training karate with my family since I was three years old. I got my black belt in karate at 13 and got introduced to judo and sumo shortly after.
Whether you're winning or losing, you've constantly got to be changing.
Chris Weidman is a tough guy; he's well rounded. He's known for being a wrestler. He's very good on the ground. He can knock people out standing up.
It's very hard because the sport evolves so fast, changes so fast. So, you have to be there to see the changes that are happening in the moment. That's why I keep training every day. I try to mix myself in all of the academies.
I can't say 'OK, let's begin to exchange and see where it goes.' We want to give a fight and give people a good show, but you have to play on a safety zone.
I don't want to be in this sport just to participate. I want to be in this to win, and that's what motivates me every day to break down barriers and to get better every time and to exceed my limits and to win fights.
I have a good relationship with the UFC.
We teach the karate methodology, bringing back the history of the martial art, the attacks that stopped being used when the martial art became a sport and that my brother and I use in the cage.
I'm a fan of Fedor, have been a fan since he was in PRIDE, a great champion, and since I like to challenge myself, new challenges, that was one of the offers that came with my move to Bellator. Of course fighting Fedor would be an honor, a dream.
I'm a real martial artist, my father always taught me that some way I have to train every day, no matter what happens your life.
I like to be busy, especially after I lost against Luke Rockhold. The best way to recover is to get another fight.
In karate, there's a lot of respect. In fact, when an opponent accepts to fight me, he's giving me a chance to show my work, so I can't diminish him at all.
Even if you win, or you lose, you have to respect your opponent.
If I have a chance, I'd like to fight at 185 pounds.
I like to be busy and fight many times a year and showcase all my potentials.
I have fought my brother some times before. We got hurt sometimes, needed stitches, but it was normal after the fights. We always had a positive rivalry that pushed both of us to our best.
Everything Mousasi says only motivates me. I have a win over him, and I think he's a little bothered by it.
Many of my greatest fights and moments were in the UFC, and they were always good to me.
When I signed with Bellator, I knew this would be a new positive chapter in my career.
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 eat very healthy all the time, low on fats and sweets and no fried foods.
In the mornings at around 5:30 A.M., I train karate with my family.
Its not just about competition: it's my life, my lifestyle. So I train every day, and I feel very good, because sometimes training is like meditations for me; it's a good escape to me to the problems for everything.
When I was 15 years old, I watched Royce Gracie in the cage, and I thought I'd like to do the same thing.
Machida Karate is for real combat. Other karate may be not for real combat because there are many rules for the competition, and a lot of the rules aren't good for real combat - you can't do some takedowns, you can't finish the fight on the ground. Machida Karate is very different.
Brock Lesnar is a big challenge for me because he's a big guy: very, very strong, very, very powerful, very, very fast. I like the challenge. Brock Lesnar, for me, would be a very good fight.
I respect Brock Lesnar as a fighter, but I know that I can fight him.
I always go into every fight trying to forget about what happened in the past, whether I won or lost.
I think to keep my principles. To keep my principles, I think, is the most important thing. Every day, everyone change. It's normal, but your principle never can change.
It's best to keep a strategic fight and try to win because the level of the sport is so high.
Only because you moved forwards, it doesn't mean you were effective. Sometimes it's the wrong criteria to be used.
My father was a very tough guy with me and my brothers. He wanted to teach us a lot of discipline and life philosophy. As I became more interested in martial arts, he started teaching a lot of fighting philosophy and karate philosophy. While he was a tough father, he also knew when to be sweet and show a softer side.
One of my brothers teaches karate at our gym and also handles the administrative side of the gym. My other brother is a fighter like me and teaches a class at the gym. So my brothers are always at the gym together training.
Karate is my main martial art; that is what I train in every day. It has always been in my life. Sumo is another Japanese martial art that I got into at an early age. It is something that has helped and added to my overall stance and is a good base. It is not something I necessarily use in all my fights, though.
I believe in my striking game against Weidman's wrestling. He's complete in every aspect of the game, but I'm confident in what I do.
I believe in myself.
Hard moments can happen with anyone. And these are the situations that you have to overcome.
I don't like to rush things.
