I actually care about things, and I care about people.
— Kamaru Usman
Once you sign a contract that states that you're going to have to fight this other man for a substantial amount of money, things change psychologically.
Being a great physical athlete is wonderful, and you need it at this level to be able to train and prepare accordingly. But the closer it comes time to perform, the ratio switches. When you're in camp, it's 90 percent physical and 10 percent mental. But as you get to fight night, it's the opposite.
I have an excellent team, a great manager, and we're going to put something together: we're going to start a foundation, and we're going to change lives.
When you start out doing something, you never wonder how big is this going to be, or how will I be remembered, or will people even care for me.
You don't ever want an African father to come to your school looking for you.
I would say my childhood was amazing.
There was a time when guys just had a specialty, like boxer or wrestler or jiujitsu guy. Then came guys who could blend taking you down with also being able to kick your head off.
A lot of people are still suffering from water-borne diseases... We want to create something where we can make life better for everyone.
Anybody in that welterweight division that think they want this, you know you don't, because I'm a problem. I'm a problem in this division.
Can anyone tell me what Jon Jones was ranked when he fought for the UFC title? No one knows. I believe, in that aspect, it was easier to get fights back then. It wasn't, 'What's this guy ranked?' You fought, made your money, and went home.
Yes, I came into this sport as just a grappler, but the more I learn, the more it shines in my fights.
I got into this sport to make a statement.
My body knows my limits.
I believe in karma.
I am what I am. I don't regret anything.
I fractured my left foot.
I'm a good, upstanding guy with moral values and core values.
I never in my wildest dreams dreamt of being in a position like this, of having a platform like this, where I can really show the world - not just Africa, but the entire world, people in Asia, India, wherever - that your current situation doesn't have to determine your future.
One of the hardest parts of this game, and what I don't think people understand, is the mental side of it. They think, 'Oh, he's a big, stronger guy.' But let me tell you, and I believe this without question: It's not always the biggest, strongest, meanest, toughest-looking who gets the job done.
We didn't have running water. We had to get water from wells, and there was a stint where I lived with my grandma where we had to get water, bring it over to the house. You had to boil the water because you never knew what parasites were in the water.
As an African, there are certain professions your family want you to do or are willing to sign off. Being in the medical professional, as a doctor, pharmacist, a nurse, or being an engineer - those are the only professions allowed!
In other countries, being from somewhere else is celebrated. But not in America.
The goal of this, I would like to think, for everybody, is to become champion.
I'd like to think I'm a hybrid to where, if you had to pick, where would you say I'm weak? I can outwrestle guys; I can outgrapple guys. I can put your lights out, and I have a gas tank for days. I can do it all.
In my village where I'm from, there's still not running water everywhere. People are still struggling to get clean water.
Once Africans realise we can just fight and get paid for it, we can do that and still provide for ourselves and our families and countries? We're going to flood the market.
If fans are willing to pay to see you fight, the promoter is happy.
I'm not just a grappler.
I ask for the fights. Sometimes I get them. Sometimes I don't.
I recall the hard work that my family went through just to continue to live the lifestyle that we were living, which wasn't by any means a great lifestyle.
I believe in fate.
Being able to open up and use my kick would make me so much more dangerous. It wouldn't even be fair to use some of the weapons that we work on.
I'm not the guy to call the cops.
You don't have to be outlandish and saying crazy things and get out of yourself to get headlines or attention.
When you aren't able to do what makes you dominant, what separates you from the pack, it can throw your mind off.
When I fought in The Ultimate Fighter Finale, I had microfracture surgery, and that's usually eight month's recovery turnaround. I had to fight three months after that, and I fought three months after that. And I had to train through that with that.
We never complained, 'We don't have this or that.' Even though we had to plant certain things and harvest them to be able to eat, we never complained.
When I first got into the sport, or first got into athletics, I always felt that sense of responsibility that I was destined for something bigger, that I was going to do something major.
Wrestling definitely shaped the direction of my life because, before that, I wanted to fit in so much. I wanted to be one of the cool cats. I was friends with the captain of the football team because he had all the chicks. I wanted to be that guy.
Some guys just like being a fighter, and they live in that world, but I got into this to be champion.
At the end of the day, my job is to win in impressive fashion.
I always envisioned hearing them say, 'and new,' and wrapping that belt around me and thinking of all the things I was fighting for.
I believe, if I beat Demian Maia, it's going to be very hard for the other top guys to go around me.
Fans want to see a fight and be entertained.
I'm a man on a mission.
They say the body is 70 percent water, and you need that water for a reason.
I lived with my grandmother for a year when I was very young, and even to this day, when I tell my mother events that took place, she can't believe that I can recall that far.
There's a blessing in everything that happens to us.
I work with one of the best striking coaches in the world, Henri Hooft.
