The more pressure you can put on me and get me out of my comfort zone, the better I shine.
— Johny Hendricks
Punch me in the face, I'll punch you twice as hard.
In my fights, it's not if I get hit; it's when I get hit.
God blessed me with a great wife, a great family, and a great coach.
If I don't get the love of the sport back, it's not about winning or losing to me: it's about having fun. If I can wake up and enjoy what I do, it's gonna show in the octagon.
I still believe in my mind I'm the best welterweight in the world.
I don't know how many times I've went to bed at five, six o'clock in the morning and woke up at 10, running four miles because I wanted to beat GSP that bad.
You only get so many opportunities to fight at the top level and stay at the top level.
All I care about is getting smarter and better.
I see myself as a power puncher, but for some reason, I can never sell myself that I'm one of the elite.
I'll downplay myself before I compliment myself.
Anytime you can be the face of the UFC is so huge, a great honor, and I would do everything I could to keep it that way.
The UFC wants to put on shows that the fans want to see, and if the fans want to see you fight someone, that's what's going to happen.
I'm done. I'm retiring. I'm getting out of the MMA world.
I've been blessed with athleticism, and don't get me wrong, I'm thankful for it. But I'm really grateful that I learned how to, without sounding arrogant, just suck it up and realize that even though I'm not at my best in a given situation, it doesn't matter. You still have to get the job done.
What I realized is that no matter what you do, you're not alone in life. Every accomplishment worth a salt, there is someone else there who played a role and took a part.
I don't really believe in that ring rust stuff.
I want the target on my back. I want everybody to come after me. That's been my goal since I started fighting.
I'm not that type of guy that says, 'No, I think I deserve more.'
I know how hard I hit, and so do my fans, and so do everyone else in the UFC.
Nobody really knows how I fight or what I'm capable of. Nobody has high expectations for me. I get to go out and prove I belong.
I really believe that God has a purpose for everything that I do.
What I've done is back off weight training and do more wrestling, cardio - where you're building muscle but not building weightlifting muscle.
Everybody's got problems in life. That's the way it is.
I'm not going to fight unless it's for a belt. Nothing else matters but the belt.
That desire and drive to keep going are crucial things to have, and time off gave that to me.
It's great to be able to fight in Dallas, but to be the main event for a fight card in Dallas is an honor in itself.
What does being an athlete mean? It means I have to be a little selfish again. I have to put my career sort of ahead of everything else - and I don't like doing that.
I never call anyone out because I have too much respect for everyone. It's hard enough just getting in the Octagon. If you call somebody out and you end up losing, it looks worse.
I get to fight a tough dude like Koscheck, and then a title shot if I win? It's great.
I've been competing my whole life. Who cares about the spotlight?
As an athlete, there is no bigger compliment in my mind you can pay a guy when you say he can get the job done despite the obstacles he'll face.
I've wrestled all my life.
Any time you get a title shot, you always try to wait for it the best you can.
It's weird, because realistically, I'm the average person. I got in one fight my whole entire life.
Growing up wrestling, you get injured, and they expect you back on the mat in a couple weeks unless it's really bad.
I'd rather have luck on my side than anything else.
I am undefeated in Oklahoma, and that's the thing; I plan on keeping it that way.
I don't want to be one of those guys who fights until they're 38, 40 years old. I don't want to put my wife through that, and I don't want to put my kids through that.
I wanted to be a father, and I wanted to be involved in my children's athletics, school stuff like that.
I can't keep fighting and being the No. 1 contender for years.
Every fight, I have to learn something.
It's been nice to spend time with the family. It's been good to spend time with the wife and kids.
Disney World was tough because you do a lot of walking, but it was worth it. To see the smiles on the faces of my kids and the memories that we made makes it all worth it.
Reebok has helped me tremendously with my training.
Sometimes you do have to make your stand if you really want something.
I've been very blessed to accomplish everything I've wanted to. Anything I've put my mind to, I've done it.
I've been under the lights since my freshman year of high school.
We've all been there, where it seems like all the cards are stacked against you, and you can't seem to do anything right. But you still have to say to yourself, 'You know what? That's not going to stop me. I still have to find a way.'
The only way to beat Georges St-Pierre, there's two ways: knock him out, or do the same thing he does to everyone else, and guess what, my wrestling is good enough to make sure I can do what he does to everyone else. I promise you that.
