Uriah Hall

In this sport, you have to evolve.

I never try to look at anything and say 'Oh this person's not that good.'

That was always my biggest concern. I didn't want to lose. I put too much pressure on myself and it caused me not to perform.

You want to perform so badly for that crowd, or you worry too much about what others think of you. You don't want to lose.

As an athlete, you sometimes put unnecessary pressure on yourself.

Jake Paul did what he had to do to win, but I definitely felt it for Anderson.

I don't back up with boxing gloves on. I take a couple shots, but I'll come at you.

Depression is a real thing, and if you don't have the right support group, support system, you won't get out of it, man.

I know how to hit you differently in every area with one foot. I know how to do it, but it's a part of the fight game.

I'm traditional. I'm like a samurai. I'm a martial artist. I'm a sniper. I know things about the body.

I make jokes all the time. I have a different type of sense of humor.

I hate fight week.

I know how to punch and kick, I know how to do stuff most people can't.

I know people are going to say 'Oh man, this guy is good, he could be the next whatever.' I don't want to compare myself to anyone else. I'm me.

For me, it was fun to work with a phenomenal guy like Machida. I was in awe. I had to snap out of it and focus or else I_d get knocked out.

The first thing you have to have is belief.

I just have to take out whoever is in front of me and go for the strap. You just have to play the game.

My goal is to go out there and be the best.

A lot of athletes, when you do something for so long, that's what you identify as. You're a football player only or you're a fighter only. People don't see that. You walk outside and you're like, wait, there's nothing else for me to do?

After leaving MMA, I fell into a really big hole. I fell into a deep depression.

I'm confident in my world.

The realm of a fight's existence is to step outside of your comfort zone for a split second - to be so ridiculously uncomfortable that it's frightening and scary - and only a few people have accomplished that. I'm one of those trying to accept that.

There's a time you need to listen to your body.

I've cut weight over 20 times. I'm used to it.

It's so hard to switch careers.

I learned I'm allergic to a lot of things, a lot of foods.

Man, when you're eating healthy, there is no favorite meal. It's boring. It's not for you, it's for your body.

You learn nothing from your wins, but you learn a lot from your defeats.

It's the hardest thing to do to persevere and work hard and work for it because things are going to get in the way. People are going to get in the way. Your own self is going to get in the way.

You win a fight, you feel good. You lose a fight, you question yourself.

I always find ways to work out in my hotel room. I turn the heat up so I can sweat more, and I do squat on the chairs, like one-legged squats. It will help a lot if I have my resistance band.

It depends on where I'm going, but a small item I usually take is a resistance band for resistance training like push-ups squats or sit ups. It's basic work but I can add tension.

When you're eating healthy you feel better. I know when I eat good I feel good.

I lost a couple fights in a row, and something wasn't there. I felt the passion went adrift, and I got distracted in some way.

It's just one of those things coming off the boat, especially in New York City. I didn't have style. I was dark skinned - still am, and they would pick on me for that. And it was other black kids, too. I was looking at this kid I'm like you're black, too. What do you mean I'm black? I understand now that's just a way of degrading you.

When the bullying got really bad I was cutting school - didn't realize they were going to call your house. My mom got a call and was yelling at me. I kind of broke down and cried.

What a lot of people didn't realize was I had stomach problems, which made it hard for me to digest food.

It could be the simplest thing and I think I'm gonna win. I'm gonna do it.

At the end of the day, I know me better than anyone.

Alone time is sitting down in a room, close the door, close your eyes and say, 'Alright Uriah, what's up?'

Mental coaches are kinda like making your bed. You have to consistently do it, which is okay, because training your mind is very important. But what if I put all that energy into doing it myself? I'm not saying I wouldn't take help, but I'm not going to make it a priority to give you all the power to say 'I need you.'

As much as I love the level of competition, I don't generally like to hurt people. Unfortunately, that's what I do for a living.

It's good to make plans, but you don't know what's going to happen when you wake up tomorrow.

When you have a dream, you're thinking about it, but when you're actually living it out, it's surreal.

If I inspire someone out there to get out of their dark place, then that's great.

I throw some crazy stuff.

I was inspired by video games and always thought, man, if I can pull something like that off that would be cool.

I love to think outside the box.

If I go out there, I'm in that cage by myself. There's no one in there with me so I have nothing to prove to anyone but myself.

I was crafty. I was creative, and this creativity is something you have to feed. Of course, there was a portion in my career where I forgot about that creativity because when you start to listen to people, you start to listen to these negative affirmations, things, comments, or opinions that you slowly start to forget who you are.