We had some rough times in TNA. We had some pay issues, and this and that, they were some other issues. But at that time, we were working harder than we ever worked. Even though, you know, we were being paid late and all, we worked harder than we worked before.
— Bobby Lashley
I grew up with nothing, and that was my motivation.
Every time I go out there, I have something to prove. Something more, something different.
When I head into the cage for an MMA fight, for that time inside the cage, I hate the person standing across the cage. I want to beat him up and beat him up to the point where he never wants to go against me again. After the fight, I can shake his hands, and he - we can be best friends. It's the same thing in professional wrestling.
That's why I love wrestling: because there's so many different people. I love everybody, from Hornswoggle to the Great Khali to Seth Rollins, to The Bludgeon Brothers. I love everything about wrestling because of that.
MMA - for me, it was something that I needed to challenge myself.
Once you catch that fever of wrestling, you really can't get it out.
When I was with WWE before, I was a big guy throwing people around - power moves. Then after that, when I left WWE, I was like, 'I still enjoy professional wrestling,' but some of the smaller guys look up at me and say, 'I don't wanna wrestle him. I don't wanna get thrown around by that guy.'
I got to fight off haters on a regular basis.
Everyone likes to be the heel. Everyone wants to be the bad guy. I mean, I love being the bad guy, but the crowd doesn't want me to be a bad guy. In real life, I'm too much of a good guy to be a bad guy.
I've never been a politics guy in wrestling; I'm just someone who came out and worked.
I want that fight with Brock Lesnar. I don't care if it's the ring, the cage, or in a street fight.
I like to get the blood flowing and get as loose as I can possibly get. It's not very difficult to hurt yourself out there if you aren't prepared, especially in a Fatal Four Way.
WWE is there for the soldiers.
I think the problem people get into is they want to go into the gym and look at other people's workouts, or they want to lift what other people are lifting. I started out really small. I actually did a lot of research, and I learned all about working out. So take gradual steps.
If you want to go for the title, you go for the title, and you fight. You don't run away; you fight.
I don't eat for pleasure; I eat for performance.
I'm not the type to call people out.
When people underestimate or think my success has come easily, that doesn't bother me.
Eric Young is phenomenal. Bobby Roode - every time I get in the ring with those guys, it's almost like magic.
When you get put in a position like that, to shave off the hair of the boss of the company, they're putting a lot of faith in you, and they believe in you.
I can't even begin to entertain another wrestler's perception of me if they don't understand what my fans look for in me. I'm different; I'm different.
Samoa Joe is great at kickboxing; he's super aggressive - he's tough.
I'm not covering up. I don't need a t-shirt on to go wrestle.
Traveling is a part of the business. I think it's really the hardest part of the business because the wrestling part is the easy part - something I love and enjoy doing.
Everybody else has the same 24 hours, but I'm going to make the most of my 24 hours.
You only live once, so you got to do as much as you can in the time that you have.
I'm a product of amateur wrestling, and there is no one there to help you with matches or win matches - you have to do it yourself.
There's only so far you can push a man.
I don't want to be bothered when I'm stretching. I need to focus.
WWE is not just about fighting; we're about the community.
I'd like to someday possibly come out with a workout video or even a manual just to teach people the things I know.
I'm a father, and that is the absolute most important thing in my life.
I am really simple with diets. I say feed your frame.
Everybody gives Trump an extremely bad rap. He's a businessman, so he is not trying to rub your back and tell you everything is going to be OK. He is going to set standards and, when everything is in chaos, you need someone who is willing to do what needs to be done.
My family comes from Panama, and I grew up in a single parent household with my mother, who barely spoke English. She couldn't get a good job, yet there were four of us for her to raise.
Kurt Angle was amazing. He was the person who got me into pro wrestling. He found me when I was at the Olympic training center just wrestling, amateur wrestling.
A lot of people look at me as such a nice guy; they don't understand how dangerous I can actually be.
I have a fanbase, and I have a large fanbase, and there's a lot of people that like me, and there's a lot of people that support me, and there's a lot of people that can relate to me.
Wrestling is in my blood.
When I went to Impact, it was me proving myself on a daily basis to a lot of different people. I mean, I had matches with Austin Aries, matches with Jeff Hardy, Bobby Roode, Drew McIntyre. I mean, I wrestled everyone. During that time, I wasn't just sitting back saying, 'Man, I hope WWE picks me up. I hope they see me. I hope to get back.'
A lot of times, professional athletes say, 'I'm not a role model; I'm an athlete.' I don't mind being a role model because I know what I've done in order to make it to where I am right now. It's a lot of hard work; it's a tremendous amount of hard work. But in order to be make it to a certain level, everybody knows it's going to take time.
Bobby Roode is amazing.
With wrestling, we're still athletes. I train like we're an athlete as opposed to a body builder. Some people still have that body-builder mentality. But not from me. I do a lot of agility work and stuff like that.
I love wrestling, and of course WWE is the main stage, but I'm happy to be with TNA.
The only way to survive is to get back up.
I wanted to go into this fight business, and I wanted to go into it full force. So when you do something like that - enter into a new venture - it keeps you very busy.
I was excited 'Maxim' wanted me to be in Expert Fitness.
Working out is simple if you know what to do.
In wrestling, you've got to be an athlete. You can't just be a body builder; you can't just be this big strong guy who picks people up and throws them around. For longevity in the business, you got to keep your body fit and together.
