“I never have a problem with the weight cut. My number one enemy is injuries because I train so hard.”

I’m from Dagestan, I’m born in Dagestan, and Dagestan is a different level for people living a tough life, people living in the mountains.

I need eight weeks, train hard, last one week make weight, and go to the war. Because when I go to the war, I have to know I am ready or no.

I want to stay humble, but I have to talk because the other guys talk too much, and I understand the crazy power the UFC PR machine has.

I don’t know about politics so much. I’m a professional athlete.

Next fight? If the UFC tell me, ‘What do you want?’ I’m going to say Tony Ferguson.

My best background is, like, smash opponents. I all the time go forward. I all the time try to take down somebody. Make him give up. This is my style, you know. This is what I do all my life.

When I fought with Michael Johnson, when I took his arm for the kimura, I can break it, but I go very slowly, be careful, because I don’t want to give him injury.

I train, eat, sleep, and repeat.

My style is not like anyone’s. I’m not a typical wrestler.

They’re all fake belts. To be honest, I think real belt is Tony Ferguson’s.

I think about only me.

You have to punch hard for knockouts, and to beat me, you have to knock me out.

Of course I am tough, but I am smart, too. I’m more smart than tough. People watching my record and say that this guy is tough. This is not about tough; this is about mind. You think when you fight. This is about everything.

Where is Conor? He wanna fight with a bus. I want to fight with a real gangster. Iaquinta, thank you so much.

I don’t fight for the money. I fight for my legacy. I fight for history. I fight for my people.

I never fight for the money, but every person is different.

The only way to eliminate war is to love our children more than we hate our enemies.

We make our friends; we make our enemies; but God makes our next door neighbour.

Never explain – your friends do not need it and your enemies will not believe you anyway.

Fear is the enemy of hope.

Enemies are so stimulating.

Unless a man becomes the enemy of an evil, he will not even become its slave but rather its champion.

In martial arts, the biggest enemy is self. Inside you struggle because you want to prove something.

There is no greater folly in the world than for a man to despair.