As far as Nurmagomedov, I just don't get how you become the No. 1 contender without actually fighting guys who are ranked in the top 10. It kind of baffles me.

I've said it from the very beginning: Fighting the best guys in the world doesn't pay as good as the circus. I want to join the circus. I'm trying to get that circus money.

The most comical thing for me, even when I watch movies, is the guy who's so crazy confident about himself, with the mink jacket - to me, that is so funny. I wish I could be like that. As a fighter, I wish I could do that, so I could make people laugh. But I can't; it's not my style.

I think it's important to say that I am genuinely thankful for the time at Bellator.

From wrestling, I learned that I was capable of much more than I thought I was.

I'm not here if Bill Hunter never forced my hand in wrestling. It was a pivotal point in my life.

Regardless of the magnitude, the crowd, or the pay-per-view sales, the goal is to beat the guy in front of me.

I started this fight career with one objective. When I step inside a ring or an octagon, it is to beat the guy in front of me.

Typically, I would say that I'm not defined by one loss and I'm not defined by one win. But I'd be lying if I told you I didn't harp on the loss at Madison Square Garden.

I would love, love, love to watch Conor McGregor fight Floyd Mayweather.

If your worst fear can come true, and everything can still be OK, then there's really not much to fear at all.

My biggest fear as a fighter is to be knocked out in front of millions of people. But after it actually happened, there's this calmness about you that says everything is OK.

I really didn't want to enter the UFC in a fight that nobody really cared about or where people thought I was just going to whoop some guy.

I like to be with my back against the wall in dangerous situations.

I think when it comes to re-signing with an organisation, there's no real compromise if you're trying to move on.

I want an opportunity to fight the best in the world and make millions of dollars doing it.

I will do whatever the UFC tells me to do, but there's not a doubt in my mind that I can be champion.

I will fight whoever the UFC wants me to fight.

The business aspect of this sport is a contradiction to what it's really about, and that's knowing something for what it is and not just what it looks like.

I think sports is a quest to find out what really is - not what perceptions are.

The truth is, a large majority of the market, I'd guess 80 percent, doesn't know anything more than what they are sold.

When I say 'fighter,' I am thinking about how you deal with adversity, how you deal with being in bad situations.

I have a tremendous support from a lot of the Underground fans. They believe in me, they want to see me do well, and they're behind me. But there are a lot of people out there who don't believe it, and so I want to separate perception and reality. I want to be able to do that.

I want to prove the naysayers wrong. They're everywhere. And to be honest with you, they're all I see, and they're what motivates me.