I'm a prize fighter. Titles don't pay bills. I fight for money. I'm making money. They're making money. Everybody's making money. That's what this is all about.
I am a private guy, and at the end of the day, I only really do care about my family. That's the most important thing: my way of life, my family. Whoever is in front of that is going to get hurt.
Looking at me now, it might be hard to believe that I didn't even have hair in my armpits when I graduated from high school. I guarantee you I was the last guy to go through puberty in my class.
There are lots of risks, but without risks, there's no reward. I think the reward is bigger than the risk.
I had a great run with WWE. WWE gave me great visibility. I met my wife there, and I got paid a lot of money; it was just my time to go. I sensed it. I was smart enough to leave. That's the bottom line.
America. Shoutout to the men in uniform that protect and serve this country. From sea to shining sea. From one white boy, to all nationalities, we've got to stand together, people.
I don't need anything to get me up at the gym other than 'Metallica' and 'AC/DC'.
I'm not a very good yes man, and I'm not very easily controlled.
I'm always staying motivated because, as training camp goes on, practices become more intense, harder, and shorter. It's a mental thing, too, not only physical - you have to stay mentally sharp and stay focused on the task in front of you.
Stay open-minded; stay focused. Train hard and train smart. For me, the older I get, the smarter I have to train also, because the recovery time is longer. Work on everything: become a well-rounded fighter - don't just be good at one thing; be good at everything.
Back in the day, I was a Royce Gracie fan and a fan of Tank Abbott. It's always the different-looking guys that you want to root for. Then there were guys like Mark Coleman and Randy Couture, so for me to get in there and fight against guys like that is pretty cool.
Really, it was either fight in the UFC or fight in the WWE. There wasn't the option of both. That was a key factor. What am I going to do? I didn't want to juggle two careers anyway.
I wasn't happy at the career I was at and wanted to try something else, and so I tried fighting, and it's working out pretty well. I set my own schedule; I have my own training facilities. I'm not traveling as much, and I'm at home every night.
I felt like I was cheated out of my career in the UFC. In my mind and in my heart, I never lost to a foe. I never lost to an opponent. I lost to diverticulitis. That was my opponent that beat me. A lot of other people might have other thoughts about that.
I had the surgery, and it was removed, and I don't have any diverticulitis in me. It's gone. It has taken a number of years to feel good again.
I just take it one fight at a time. If I'm able to fight, and I'm still healthy enough, I'd like to fight. But I'll know when it's time to stop.
I've never turned down a fight in the UFC. Even when I was champ, I never turned down a fight.
My strength is my wrestling, but I don't focus on it as much. I try to focus on a lot of different things like knees, elbows, submissions, and submission defense - just a lot of different things.
I'm a big believer in living out your dreams and facing your fears.
My hands. I'm constantly working on my hands. I'm constantly working on my ground game and constantly trying not to get satisfied with where I'm at with my career and where I'm at as an athlete. I'm somewhat happy, but never satisfied.
I don't hang my championship trophies on the walls, because they don't pay the bills.
I was a true wrestler. I was a Division I national champion. I came into the business wanting one thing and one thing only, and that was to be the champion, and I wasn't going to let anybody stand in my way. I think there was one guy that had a problem with that, and that was Undertaker.
A guy that I was supposed to face - and I think that he was just plain downright scared to get in the ring with me because he was one of those guys that was on top and saw a huge threat in Brock Lesnar at the time - that's 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin.
One match that really sticks out for me, there's a bunch of matches with all the guys that I worked with. For me, when I got in the ring, I approached it as being real because I was a real character. I didn't have a gimmick name; I didn't have a gimmick finish.
I missed the NFL by an inch. IRS problems... No money coming in, and not that many options left because I signed that stupid no-compete clause with WWE. I had no one to blame but myself.
At the top of my career, I wasn't at the top of my game.
Never been in the habit to look back.
You get so brainwashed. You're on the road 300 days a year, and that's why guys get so messed up. This life becomes a part of them. It's not real, but some guys who are still in the business think it is.
I know of Conor McGregor. This sport has evolved even from when I first entered the octagon. I think people are finding out that you have to talk the talk, and you have to - more importantly, you have to walk the walk.
I've never come out and said, 'I hold the most pay-per-view buys.' All I know is what I got paid, and I'm happy.
I thought I was gonna be a farmer.
I don't want to ever intentionally hurt someone, because it is pure entertainment.
My career has been defined by dominating every opportunity presented to me. I am excited for my newest opportunity representing WWE 2K17 as the franchise's ambassador and honoured to serve as the WWE 2K17 cover Superstar.
I got the genetics of - not to get into racism or anything - but I'm built like a black man.
If I can't outplay you in football, I'm gonna fight ya.
Life for me has always been about timing, and it was bad timing for that disease to hit me; it was time to exit stage.
I was always fascinated by strength. Arnold was an idol of mine.
