My parents told me if I wanted to fight, they wouldn't support me.
Matt Riddle
I'm about great competition. That's why I can have a great smile beforehand and connect with the crowd, and then, when I get in the ring, I flip that switch.
Any match with Keith Lee is definitely circled on my calendar.
I like wrestling the bigger guys, personally, because I can lay into them harder, and they can dish it back out.
I know I'm skilled - I know my background - and the people who are familiar with my credentials know better than to try me.
I love working with new guys, especially MMA guys.
I am me. I've always been a character, and my character's story lives into pro wrestling.
In pro wrestling, if somebody throws a move, it's my job not to get hurt but also to sell the move and make it look like I'm dying.
Even when you're on top in the UFC, you only get paid a couple times a year.
I'm just tired of the unethical people, the scumbags, all that. Maybe that's how all businesses are run, but in MMA, I've been in the UFC, Legacy, and Bellator. The UFC was the best, and even they didn't treat you that well.
Take into consideration I get to play-fight in my underwear every week, and I get paid very well to do it.
MMA is like the Colosseum in Rome: the fans want to see violence.
I'm a shark, and I swam in a lot of different ponds, but I'm ready for the ocean.
When I started doing pro wrestling, it wasn't the physical aspect doing the moves or taking the moves that was hard: it was interacting with the crowd, body movement, selling, getting that emotional attachment with people so they're invested in a match. That was the hard part.
My goal is to make wrestling more like mixed martial arts.
If I do make WWE - because in my head, until it's official, it's not a thing - I think if they brought me in, it would be very short lived at NXT, and I'd be on main roster extremely quick.
In sports entertainment, you can be larger than life.
I'll be honest, when I first started pro wrestling, everybody else did clotheslines better than me. They did everything about pro wrestling better than me. But when it comes to fighting, getting nitty and gritty, I'm the man.
Not only do I have fun in the ring, but I have fun walking out to the ring. I have fun walking away from the ring.
There's nothing worse than a bunch of toothless, ignorant people yelling at you. It's horrible.
Wrestling is one of the hardest things, and it has nothing to do with the extremely hard physical part of it. It has to do with the psychological part of it.
I'm usually just so laid back most of the times.
Growing up, my family wasn't really into sports, so we didn't really watch sports, and then one day I stumbled across the TV: pro wrestling.
I like to hit hard, I like to be hit hard, and I like really competitive matches. That's my take on pro wrestling.
Growing up, I was always a fan of wrestling, but I was also a fan of MMA and stuff.
I have to say, running in flip-flops through the airport can be pretty tricky.
My goal isn't just to make wrestling into a bigger show and make good money, but it's also to evolve pro wrestling to where I think it belongs.
I'm always learning, always trying new things, because you have to to stay fresh.
Living in my parents' house is pretty sweet. It's not like they're rich or anything, but they're pretty nice to me, so it was pretty good living there, too, and all I did was jujitsu. I was just like a stallion, just living on my parents' couch. It wasn't terrible.
It doesn't matter if you're the best wrestler in the world and can do every move perfectly; if you don't connect with the crowd or sell well or have good promos, nobody cares.
The first time I was in a ring with William Regal, I called him 'Bro,' and from there, everyone just kept saying 'Bro' to me. I kept saying 'Bro,' and before I knew it, I was deemed The King of Bros.
I feel like I started with wrestling, and a love of pro wrestling, that lead me to MMA and the UFC. And now it's come full circle back to pro wrestling.
My goal isn't to be one of the best; it's to change the game, to change the way things work.
I'm down to fight anybody at any given time, anywhere.
Pro wrestling fans love what they watch, and they go out to enjoy and have fun.
When I was in the UFC, I would get tickets for a fight, and then what I would do is go in the crowds and watch the rest of the fights. A lot of times, I would end up taking pictures and signing people's books. I didn't care if I got any money or anything. I was just there enjoying my time and watching the fights.
Crowds are always different, but I know I have hardcore fans who watch everything I do online, so I have to make sure every match is different.
To me, the more the merrier. The more times I can get in that ring and get in front of a crowd and wrestle, the better.
I'm pretty sure I could beat Tyron Woodley. Nothing against him.
I was probably one of the top three or four wrestlers in the world on the indies, just killing it. Nobody really saw me going to a bigger company because of my past and just how people view me.
I always wanted to wrestle, but when you're a kid, how do you do pro wrestling? For me, it seemed like the easiest way for me was to get into amateur wrestling and go that route because it was a place where I was allowed to go.
Being real in pro wrestling has paid off. Just being myself - that really translated to the fans.
When you have a guy like me who's a former UFC fighter and who is basically a normal guy who can do exceptional things, that connects with people rather than some random Viking who can also do exceptional things.
Promoters saw the potential in me and the value in me. It was because of companies like Evolve, PWG, Progress, and Beyond Wrestling. Those are the big ones that gave me a push and made my name worth something on the indies.
I've always been a bro, and I've used the word 'bro' a lot.
If you train, you work hard, you're actually 110-percent dedicated, you're doing it for all the right reasons, you're probably gonna end up on the top. You know the cream always rises to the top.
I love fighting, but I don't miss waiting months upon months just to fight once in front of people and then have to wait months again to fight once in front of people.
I get more respect doing professional wrestling than I ever did in MMA.
In fighting, if you get hit in the face, you don't show it. You can't show it.
That's why I like the indies: because I like being who I am. I get to be who I am in the ring, on the microphone, everywhere. It's great. I never have to get out of character because I am Matthew Riddle.
