Legacy is not what I did for myself. It's what I'm doing for the next generation.
Vitor Belfort
The worst thing in life is not to die but to live with bitterness.
I was the youngest champion of the UFC.
I've had some ups and downs in my personal life, but I have overcame them.
By the time I was 17 years old, I already had my black belt.
Sometimes I flashback and say, 'Wow I'm still doing this. Wow, it's crazy.' And I'm very thankful, but I think my body needs a rest.
Everybody has haters and lovers. That's what life is all about.
I'll focus on my training, no matter who I fight.
That's how I live my life, with belief. I am a winner.
It's not about motivation. It's about what's driven inside of you.
I don't like this little word 'if.' If we start adding 'if, if, if,' that means I wouldn't conquer anything completely.
In the natural life, we eat, we drink water, we give birth, we pay taxes. In the spiritual life, we can only reach it by faith.
I'd like to thank Jesus. He's the one who changed my life.
We don't have any kind of sponsors. The players invest themselves. They need money. They need resources... That's why, in sports and teams, they have sponsors - in soccer, in the NFL. Everyone has sponsors who invest and help to pay daily expenses.
Let me fight Jon Jones. I need that rematch.
Life is about seasons, and I think you got to know the seasons.
My body is not the same anymore for training. It's too much pain. I did more than 14 surgeries. I left everything in the Octagon.
I'm very proud to tell you guys I have been accepted into Stanford University, one of the main institutions of learning and research in the world.
I thank God every day.
How many fighters are going to be able to leave the legacy that I did? Nineteen years old, I came and I conquered.
You're going to have to swallow Vitor Belfort. I'm going to reinvent myself and come back different every time.
My mindset as an athlete and as a man is to accept what God is asking me to do and to live my life expressing God's word.
The Holy Spirit gives me everything I need.
Like in combat when you're in chaos, a Navy SEAL in chaos, you cannot be afraid of dying for a cause.
I learned that education and sport are the bedrock for any person, but education comes first, no doubt about it.
I'd fight any beast in the jungle, you know?
I made some adaptations, as I combined karate with my boxing game. I'm adding a couple of nice things from Shotokan to my game.
I lost a lot of money with sponsors.
I'm a proper man.
The one thing the fans wanted to see is me getting the title shot.
The sweet feeling is knowing that nobody gave me anything for free.
I have the most loyal fans that have been with me since I was 19 years old, when I was just a young guy becoming a world champion.
It's never late to go after your dreams. All it takes is believing and hard work.
I'm not retiring, because when you retire, you're still getting paid. I'm not getting paid, so I'm not retiring.
People don't know what pain is until they suffer.
I believe the reason why I fight in Brazil is because I sell a lot in Brazil.
I'm just trying to be fair with everybody and also with myself.
Training for five-round fights is too much for the body.
We need to reinvent ourselves.
I'm training like an animal. Nobody trains harder than me.
People say, 'Oh, so you should retire.' Yeah, you want me to retire so you won't get knocked out. I won't retire.
Eighteen years doing this, my friend. Eighteen years - combat sport. I think you will not find this in history, I believe.
I am very loyal to my principles.
I started very young... I learned my martial arts first in the street. There were always fights. That's the culture in Brazil.
With Carlson Gracie, who saw something in me, I started learning and loved mixing together the martial arts.
Sometimes you fall down, but you have to pick yourself back up.
What I want is the belt. It doesn't matter who has it.
I have been fighting and winning all the fights in my division. I think I deserve a title shot.
I have a life of sacrifice. I don't have a normal social life.
You've got to respect your body and know the time to transition to what's next. A lot of athletes cannot transition. They don't have nothing to do after.
