I practice going backward all the time.

The Hendricks/Lawler fights, those were just epic. Both were non-stop. I couldn't stop watching, and it was hard to look away. I watch those as a fan, and to see two guys fighting like that for 25 minutes is crazy.

I'm the best in the division. I know I am.

Saving people, helping people, is just something I always wanted to do.

I had to work hard to keep up with my mom. That's where I learned it from. She's a freak.

I've fought the best guys in the world, and I've beat the best guys in the world.

All you can do is the same as any other fight: whoever they put in front of you, you go in there and try to get the W.

Cleveland people are crazy; that's why I live here.

Werdum's the champ for a reason. He's good at jiu jitsu; like he says, he's gotten better on his feet.

Listen, I'm the champ, and I'm not going to pick and choose who I fight.

I'm from Cleveland. I love this place. I'm never going to leave.

DC is good all round. He pushes the pace, makes you think what you're doing, makes you uncomfortable.

One guy might be ranked higher, but it doesn't mean anything. Where these fights go, lots of things can happen.

I understand it's promotion, but no one ever gave me a chance. No one ever thought I'd be the champ, and look where I'm at now.

Whoever they want me to fight, I'm going to fight. So I really don't care.

When my wife was getting a lease for her Jeep Cherokee, and I saw a Dodge Ram Sport, I thought, 'Oh wow, it's amazing.'

Cleveland's a great city. I love the city. The people here are awesome. They're loyal and hard-working, and they're loyal to our sports scene, and things are changing here.

I'm going to do what I want to do. If he wants to go to the ground, that's fine. I'm a wrestler.

I just want to fight. That's all I want.

At the end of the day, it's a fight, and anything can happen.

People have always worn Cleveland shirts and supported Cleveland no matter how bad the teams were or how close we were. It didn't matter. That's really all about the city. We're just hardworking people that love the city and don't care how the teams do.

I don't care about history; all I care about is winning.

Cleveland, we've got a champion, baby!

I fell for my own hype. I had too many people saying I couldn't be beat, and I actually fell for it.

I traded my 2002 Silverado in for the Trailblazer, and after my second fight, I got a win bonus. It was the knockout-of-the-night bonus, $50,000, and I paid the rest of my car off, and I gave it to my mother because I had a sponsorship with a Chevy dealership.

I wouldn't want my corner throwing in the towel no matter what. I wouldn't want my corner to do that.

When I become champion, you know, I'll never stop being a firefighter.

I want you to tell me how bad I suck and how I'm going to get knocked out and how I've been lucky my whole career. That's fine. All day.

I do miss the Avalanche. That's the my favorite car of all time, but that Dodge Ram Rebel has overtaken the Avalanche; I just love that truck. It's got good vents in the hood; there's no running boards underneath, so I can go Baja-ing if I want to, off-roading.

I'm just a normal dude.

I think I train too hard.

I'm not scared to go to the ground. I've been wrestling my whole life. I've done a lot of jiu jitsu, but I like standing up, and every fight starts there.

I make no excuses. Stefan Struve was the man that night. He earned his win fair and square.

I told you I'm the best in the world.

I've got a great team around me. They keep me working hard; they keep me focused.

Every fight's like that. You try to break the guy's will.

I like winning, so every time I win, it's a better feeling every time.

MMA was like wrestling; I love competition.

Junior Dos Santos is one of the best heavyweight fighters of all time, and he has proven it by being a champion. That is something that I want to be in my career, and I understand to achieve that, I have to beat guys like him.

I like being the underdog. I like turning around and shutting people up when they tell me I can't.

Fabio Maldonado jumped up to heavyweight for our fight, and while he wasn't ranked, he is a super-tough dude and had never been knocked out before.

I'm hungrier than all of them. They didn't put in the effort that I did to get the title. So I don't care what it takes - I'm not giving up that title. I worked too hard to get it, and I'm not going to lose it.

I love watching 'Orange Is the New Black,' and I play video games, like 'Call of Duty.'

My day job keeps me grounded. When I show up to work, I'm not some star fighter or anything, I'm just Stipe. I'm going to keep working in my hometown as long as I can.

You're always nervous before a fight.

I am always going to be the same guy. The fireman that lives in Cleveland.

It's up to the UFC. Whoever they put in front of me, I'll fight.

I just work hard at everything I do. If there's something I need to learn, I stick to it, I learn it and put everything I have toward it.

I just want to work hard and have good fights.