“This is the fight game, where somebody could get seriously injured, an...” — Chad Mendes Quote

This is the fight game, where somebody could get seriously injured, and that's what I'm looking to do when I get in there against Conor McGregor.

It's just crazy to think of all the stuff that we've done and gone through and accomplished. It feels good looking back, it's been a crazy, wild ride for sure.

If I go out there and beat Aldo I would rather fight a bigger name like Conor. Not necessarily a bigger name, but a guy with a bigger draw like that.

I started wrestling when I was five years old, and from the time that I actually had the knowledge of what college wrestling was and what a national championship meant, it was a goal I set for myself. It's something I worked for my whole life. To get there finally and to come up just short, it's pretty hard to take.

Everyone has been injured, regardless of whether they're an athlete or not.

My whole body is a wreck. I've injured myself so many times with jujitsu, skateboarding, football. I guess I like to live hard.

As a player you have to look after your body because no one else will. I'd rather be proactive than kowtow to everyone and be injured all the time.

You never know what could happen. Someone could get injured early in the game, so everyone knows they have to be ready. Anyone can come on at any stage in the game and make the difference.

I know why I lost my fight to Ryan Bader. Because I was injured. I needed surgery but I didn't want to back out because I was fighting in Japan.