If Gerard Gordeau would have won the first UFC, everybody would be learning savate.
— Royce Gracie
The art of Gracie jiu-jitsu is to learn how to defend yourself in any situation, not to score points, not for tournament style. It's for a street-fight situation.
When you're a fighter, you have to be ready all the time. There's no 'I need a month.' It's always time.
My father didn't make us fighters, he made us teachers.
Tim Kennedy is one of the toughest guys in my opinion.
It's always good to have more promotions, give more fighters work.
OK, if he's a grappler, good for me, I know what to do. If he's a kickboxer, I gotta get in a clinch and move a certain way. If he's a karate man, he moves a different way, but I'm still going to have to clinch. So, a sumo wrestler, I have to clinch. It's just, how I get there, how I move it.
I have such a big family, sometimes, I was wondering, when is it going to be my turn? There's always a brother who's older, younger, bigger, stronger, faster, I was like, 'hey, give me a chance guys.'
It's always a pleasure to watch a Gracie winning. We were born fighting.
If you trained jiu-jitsu his whole life, why would you trade punches on fight night against a striker?
GSP is at the top of my list in knowing how to use strategy, how to bring an opponent out of his game, how to beat a guy without taking a beating. And he's good in standup and good at grappling.
I'm not a fighter to score points of fight with time limit.
I get stopped at the airports by just everyday people that are not even fans of the MMA and they say how they have seen me fight. Its very humbling and also rewarding.
In any professional level competition, soccer players, you've got to know when to stop.
My father created this whole MMA thing.
The greatest tribute you can to pay to my father is to continue to train and share Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, remembering to never lose sight of the fact that what you do off the matt counts more than what you do on the matt.
I'm a MMA fighter, man. I'm a MMA fighter, all the way.
You have to work on your stand-up to know what's coming, but jiu-jitsu is enough to win the fight.
That's good when the guy has confidence. It's not bad. I want to fight someone who thinks like that.
I never stopped training, I never stopped working out.
I only sign one fight at a time.
I believe in pure jiu-jitsu. That's what I've done in the past.
You have tons of talents everywhere you go, so you can't be stuck to only one promotion.
The main thing is strategy. It's not just come in and duke it out and fight.
I could live on fruits.
Werdum is good, is a smart fighter. He knows how to set up a beautiful strategy.
You have to know your opponent and take him out of his game.
I like guys who can use strategy, not just tough guys.
I'm a vale-tudo fighter.
I fight because I want to not because I have to.
Fighting is about a strategy. MMA is not all about brutality.
I don't drink, I don't smoke.
My Jiu Jitsu is with the gi. It's the real style of Jiu Jitsu, it's with the gi and I fight MMA.
Do this rubber guard stuff and I'll punch you in the nose.
A lot of fighters complain, 'Man he's five pounds heavier than me.' Really? It doesn't matter, man.
You're a warrior or you're not.
We fight to prove that our art, Gracie jiu-jitsu, is the best.
I've trained boxing in the past to learn the distance, trained wrestling to understand how he would take me down, but I won't get there to fight my opponent's game.
I do jiu-jitsu my whole life, so why would I try to stand and bang with Mike Tyson? I'm going to learn boxing in six months because my opponent is good in boxing? That makes no sense.
The UFC was my home and will always be my home. I helped creating and building that home.
My second fight at UFC 1, I fought Ken Shamrock. In the fight I choked him. As soon as he tapped, I let go. He tried to continue, but the ref got kind of stuck like, 'should I let it go or stop the fight.' That's when I looked at the ref and I said, let it go, we're going to continue.
Bellator and Viacom want to give fans exciting fights and enable fighters to continue to grow and most importantly provide for their family, and it's something I want to be a part of.
That's why I like Demian Maia and Fabricio Werdum. Demian will take you down and do his game. Werdum learned the stand-up to know what's coming, but he never stopped using his jiu-jitsu. He will clinch, take you down and submit you.
Demian Maia, I love the way he fights.
GSP knows how to use a lot of strategy.
I take all the opportunities that come my way and I am thankful that I have them.
You know the 80s music is something that no one wants to admit liking, but once then start playing everyone is into it.
I've never had a fight in the street.
Face life's challenges with confidence, dare to pursue your dreams and live to the fullest just as my father did.
Yes, I do Jiu Jitsu for a living.
