What would you learn from Conor McGregor?
Take everything in. The way Conor carries himself and promotes himself is something that would be really cool to learn from him. Not everything he does is my style, but he does things really, really well. His striking, the way he always sets up counters, and he’s just on the ball. Me and my coach, Duke Roufus, were working and we were watching his fight against Eddie Alvarez. His Eddie Alvarez fight was so beautiful. Everything he did was perfect to counter everything Eddie did. He was set up all the time and his left was just looking so good that night.
Who inspired you to start MMA? Any former or current fighters that helped develop your passion?
My first favorite fighter was BJ Penn; he was the first fighter I really watched. Then Anderson Silva, too; that was the era I first really started watching. There have been some really good fighters. Aldo was one of my favorites for a long time. I was a ‘45er for a long time, so watching him be the king in the WEC and then when he first came over to the UFC, it was good. After that, the Diaz brothers. If there’s anybody that I’ve been an actual fan of, it’s the Diaz brothers. I love the way they work, their cardio, the way they carry themselves, true to themselves all the time. It’s basically teammates after that, and I rock with my team. Gerald Meerschaert has been a huge influence on my grappling style and my game. He thinks he taught me the guillotine, but I really taught it to him! Training with Paul Felder was so dope when he was with us, as well.
Before The Ultimate Fighter: Team McGregor vs Team Chandler Preview Show
What do you think is going to be your toughest challenge in making it to the end?
Keeping the mindset while in that house, especially while you’re around a bunch of people that you necessarily don’t like, I guess. You might fight these guys, so going in, I just don’t like fraternizing with people I’m going to fight anyway. I’m here with all these guys and it’s like we’re just getting to know each other. It just helps you get ready for everything in the UFC. Once you’re on those big pay-per-views you’re travelling with the guy that you’re fighting, you’re going to be across from each other all the time. This is just getting you ready for that kind of thing.
Why are you going to be the winner of The Ultimate Fighter season 31?
It’s going to be me because I’m the best all-around fighter here. I’m all around. I’m a great striker, I got really good submission game, I’m ready to go. Fighting really fast is my thing. As a professional, I think I’ve had a couple times where I turned around and fought just a couple weeks later. As an amateur, three different times, I fought twice in the same month. One time I was scheduled to fight twice in a night, and it just ended up not happening. I love that. I like to stay active and be ready to go. Finish the fight, generally take a week off, and then I want to be right back. I just want to fight and make a living. I kept telling people, ‘When I meet Dana White, I’m going to be like ‘Hey, I’m the new Cowboy Cerrone.’ If you need a short notice fight 55-70, call me up, I’m ready to go all the time.
