You gotta choose what battles you can win.
This sport is growing. It's about patience, rather than getting caught up in five in a row, want a title shot, main event. The goal is to put on a great fight and be smart.
Emotion works against you. The less emotion, the more you use your brain and fight smart.
Of course I am tough, but I am smart, too. I'm more smart than tough. People watching my record and say that this guy is tough. This is not about tough; this is about mind. You think when you fight. This is about everything.
Kelvin Gastelum, there's many ways I can classify his style. I like it. He's improved. One thing I can say is that he's improved over his run in the UFC from 'The Ultimate Fighter' and now being a contender. But his style? It's very Mexican. You have the Mexican style of boxing, and he has a Mexican style of MMA, like smart Mexican style.
He sells, he knows how to talk, he's smart, he's no fool. McGregor doesn't fight, he just reacts, he's never first to throw a punch. He goes in there to tease, not to fight. He's like Muhammad Ali.
Jiu jitsu 101: make the other guy do all the work.
You always have to play it safe, no matter who you're fighting. I don't fight any easy guys. I haven't maybe ever in the UFC. To me, you've always got to be safe. But I don't want to have my foot on the brake at all. My foot is going to be on the gas, and I'm going to be smart at everything.
You not only have to box smart, you have to be ruthless in the ring.
If you're in the ring with somebody that doesn't throw good punches, guess what. Don't have him throw any punches. You work to their strengths. It's really not that difficult. You don't try to get them to do things that are out of their realm or whatever. It's not hard. It's not rocket science.
I don't fight safe; I fight smart.
Maybe I lose my fights because I don't fight smart.
I'm going out there as I do in every fight to put guys away but I'm going to do it in a smart fashion.
