I train every day to destroy whoever they put in front of me.
— Jose Aldo
I don't even watch my own fights. If it's not someone from my team or someone I like, I guarantee you that I'll go to the movies with my family instead.
Even parrots talk. I don't care about what they say.
Every fight is a new fight.
The best is that one that beats everybody. I don't care about the rankings.
Talking makes the fight bigger... When the fight is over, everyone goes in opposite sides with money in the pocket. You have to talk trash because that brings money.
I'm happy that Holloway is the champion. An example, someone who deserved being where he is.
Thank God the UFC and MMA gave me a lot of stuff.
I take much pride in winning. I don't accept losses, so I'm always going after that. The day I lose this fire, I think it's time for us to stop.
I was really close to my father since I was young. He always told me that I had to work in order to become a man, so I had to stay with him when my mother left. He always took me to work to help him as a bricklayer. I was just a kid, so I did what I could do to help him.
Nobody gave me anything. I conquered everything. And I gave them a lot more than they gave me back.
Everybody knows if you have the rules, you need to follow the rules and do exactly what you need to do.
Something I always liked to train is kickboxing.
McGregor has a good punch, but he cannot say that he's the biggest puncher. MMA gloves are tiny - four ounces - so when they connect, they drop you.
People come to me to say I don't sell; Brazilian media say I don't give interviews. Nobody is obligated to do anything.
Of course, people will be partial, but I put myself among the best in history.
I think Americans are really patriotic people, so patriotism is something they can understand. I'm very patriotic about Brazil, my country, and that includes my language.
I can fight Cain Velasquez if they want. It's not up to me, I'm not the matchmaker.
We create difficulties in training, so we never think it's easy.
If a fighter thinks he knows everything and stops trying to evolve, he's lost.
We always try the knockout, but it's hard to get it if the opponent always runs away.
We need to know how to handle the criticism.
Rankings mean nothing. You have to talk trash.
McGregor was never a champion of anything. He defeated the champion and left.
Yes, I think about having a career in boxing, but I want to start from the bottom, start from zero. I want to get ranked and one day fight for a belt. I don't want to fight just to fight, for money, to go after big fights and challenge a great champion.
I fight for everybody, national and international, no matter where they are. I want to help those athletes. Not only those in the UFC - those that are in the big league and can have a better future - but those in the small promotions and need our help.
My father was a bricklayer, and my mother was a housewife. It was complicated, obviously, because of our humble origin, but thank God we were all focused.
The UFC and WEC didn't give me anything. Everything I conquered was my merit and from my team.
We win, lose, but learn in the defeat.
Not just me but everybody in the WEC was dreaming of fighting in the UFC and become a champ. Thank God I went there and became a champion. I root for the WEC guys. I do.
McGregor has no respect for the sport, for the person. That's it. He's not good for the sport.
Some people win 10, 15, and don't fight for the belt.
Portuguese is the language of my heart; it's the language of my feelings. It's the language that I feel I can express myself best in.
If I say one thing to the UFC, I say it in an interview. I don't have conflicting stories.
The training is intense here at Nova Uniao.
We always train with heavier sparring partners to make it harder so the fight will be easier.
Every fighter seeks evolution.
If you lose, no one will remember you, but if you're the champion, they will always remember you.
I want superfights, to challenge other opponents.
When I started, athletes fought for honor, respect, philosophy.
That was my biggest dream, to one day become champion in MMA and boxing. That is my biggest dream.
I dream of being champion and dream going out as champion. That's my biggest motivation.
I wanted to train jiu-jitsu instead of capoeira because the mat was soft. It was better than training capoeira on the hard floor. I started reading jiu-jitsu magazines, reading about the world champions, and becoming one of them became my goal.
We came from a humble background but with a lot of love, so we were able to overcome that.
I never fought for money. I had a good career and legacy as featherweight champion.
I want to follow my path.
I've considered going to lightweight. As soon as my trainer decides that I can go up, then I will.
A champion doesn't choose opponents or where the fight is going to be.
Everybody fights for money, of course, but I wanted to leave a legacy when I retired, get my name in the history. I don't think like that anymore. When I lost the belt, I saw how reality is. Champion means nothing.
My objective since I started my career was: become the champion, remain the champion, retire the champion.
