James Haskell Quotes

I showed that I can fight without boxing, that I can take a punch.

Part of my gift as a fighter is being a human punching bag.

I endured many weeks of it, but I had a big background in martial arts and fighting as a kid, so kind of all the problems got brushed away and I was ready.

In my fights, it's not if I get hit; it's when I get hit.

You have to be able to take a punch. A strong neck is really important.

In mixed martial arts, if you get kicked in the face, it's your job not to show any expression to your opponent.

I'm used to throwing my body around. I'm used to taking a punch.

I used to fight in school. I was a rough, athletic child. I always knew I could fight and, watching UFC, I was always fascinated by it.

I'm the type of fighter who has never made an excuse. I fought with a broken rib, broken leg.

I learned to listen as a good guy, how to fight back without throwing away the heat, and how to fight back while I was still hurting. That part would always keep you in the game and keep you in the match.

I was in my junior year of high school and I had been playing soccer and basketball almost my entire life, and I wanted a change of pace. I wanted to do something more, something different. That's when I found an MMA gym about 45 minutes from my house and fell in love with the idea of becoming a professional fighter.

As a professional athlete I can tell you I feel every single emotion and not one of them ever helped me in a fist-fight before.

I've trained myself to fight an army, so one guy will not defeat me.

It makes sense for people who are good at fighting to go out and do it-because if they're good at it, that means the fewest number of other people die.

When people direct insults at me, I can take it.

I think life is always dangerous. Some people get afraid of it. Some people don't go forward. But some people, if they want to achieve their goal, they have to go. They have to move... We have seen the barbaric situation of the 21st century in Swat. So why should I be afraid now?

Back when I was maybe 19, guys would go, 'I can kick your butt!' So I had a few showdowns. To my advantage, I learned martial arts, and what you really learn is not to fight.

No I don't miss fighting, I still got my wits about me and there are a lot of people who do it and get beat up, and I don't want to be one of them, I have children to raise.

The quicker you get acclimated to getting hit and being on the ground, it's better for you when the games start.

Yes, I am physical but never go looking for fights. I have been in my share of them but never looked for them.

You had to know how to fight or you had to know how to avoid a fight. I didn't enjoy fighting, so I learned how to avoid them.

Characters in TV and theatre tend to experience a lot of conflict, so I push myself through sport to physical and emotional levels that hurt so I've some other reference for extreme experience that isn't me shouting at my girlfriend or my mum. It's a way of controlling the uncontrollable.

I started doing MMA and boxing at the same time - I always wanted to try an MMA fight to see what it was like. I had one fight, and I was hooked.

A lot of people have problems with public confrontation, but it doesn't worry me at all. I can handle myself. I know my martial arts.

I go to gyms quite a bit, martial arts gyms, MMA gyms. I try to train with the best people, with who's who in the martial arts, just to keep myself sharp.