Hi.
All right.
I think last time you were here answering questions from
us around this time of fight week, it didn't take
a genius to figure out you weren't feeling at your
best necessarily.
You were talking about purging your neighbour, stuff like that.
It seemed like you're a little bit jaded.
How much better do you feel this time around?
Oh, man.
I'm.
I'm a lot better.
Thanks.
And I'm sorry about that for all you guys.
Yeah, I was on autopilot.
That was it.
That's all.
The only way I can explain it.
And everything fell just autopilot.
So to get back here and now sort of get
to this part of fight week, right, Wake up still
ahead of you.
But to know like, oh, this is how I meant
to be feeling at this part of fight week.
Does that just give you sort of, I don't want
to say confidence, but a renewed excitement for Saturday night,
knowing that you're going to compete 1000%.
Just just going through the motions again, a fight week
and and changing the scenery where I was staying from
last time to this time.
And then just kind of comparing both this one just,
it feels way different.
It was way different.
When you were watching Diego fight last time, was there
a sense of like, shit, that should be me in
there?
Was there a sense of stuff or did you just
feel so physically bad that you just had to let
it go?
It it was both.
It was both.
They were all staying in the hotel room.
And then what we did the like the, you know,
you put your phone and it connects to the TV
and we, yeah, we kind of were watching the fights
that way.
And then I, I was like, laying in bed and
I saw this fight.
And then I was like, damn, that should have been
me.
But then I also thought, like, well, you know, come
on, bro.
Like, had that been you that night, you probably wouldn't
have won.
Like, the way you were feeling.
Let's just be honest.
But it was just, it was a bittersweet moment knowing
I was there, almost made the way.
And, you know, we went through what we went through
and I didn't really want to pull out.
But then just you have to make a choice.
We made peace with it.
And that was it, you know?
But yeah, I had those feelings of, you know, we
could have got this done with and then moved on
to the next that said best case scenario, right?
They rebook it.
And they don't just rebook it.
They rebook it at the sphere in Las Vegas.
A one of one event that you get to be
a part of, part of history for the UFCI.
Assume that when you got the call that they wanted
to redo this, then that was a OK, maybe this
was all meant to happen and maybe we get to
live this out how we're supposed to.
Yeah, at 1000% we are.
I already knew that this fight was it based on
the fact of me not being able to make the
fight.
Him winning versus EJ was like a big question was
like, well, if he doesn't do this tonight and then
there's no future for me as in terms of fighting
him.
That means it's done saying he knew one and we're
like, OK, the future still there and then guaranteed that,
you know, behind closed doors they were like, hey bro,
he do all these favors for us.
We we got your back and and that's when they
push for me to fight him.
But I wasn't reluctant at all.
I, I said, actually, you know what, I have a
fire lit underneath me now because of what happened before
I got to do the whole wayans.
I have to go face off.
And we did the whole, we went through the motions
and we started the story and we never finished it.
Saturday we finish it finally, you know, and I don't
want to leave anyone with, with any doubt or with
anything of, of how this story ends.
And then after this, I mean, is it still lightweight
on the mind?
I know you had some ideas or some fights up
there that you're interested in.
Is that still the goal?
1000 percent, 1000% because you know, you got bulk fighting
in October.
Sorry, bulk.
You have to put in Max fighting in October.
Then after that you have whatever they decide on next
year to fight.
And then so it's like it's like it's like a
line to to fight for the belt.
And depending on how this fight goes this weekend is
going to determine whether the fans believe that I deserve
another shot or not.
But either or, you know, my goal is to stay
busy and if there's nothing for me in the featherweight
division, then I'll move up right, right here.
I know you said it was hard to watch that
fight thinking that you should have been involved, but was
any part of you like when they announced Danny Gay
where you just like God damn, dude, like 5 hours
notice you step up to fight Diego Lopez?
I was happy.
I'm not.
I was happy because I was like, bro, I felt
bad.
It's like I felt bad.
It's like, bro, look at everything we both went through
in two weeks and I'm the one that pulls out.
I, I wasn't very I, I was, I was hard
on myself for it, given even the circumstances of being
sick.
But then to see him that he actually has a
fight, I was like, let's go like, cool.
You still get to make your money.
You still get to, you know, like you get to
earn your stuff.
And the only doubt, not the only doubt, but the
only?
Was what what if he loses tonight?
That means this story ends here because, you know, that's
it.
It's kind of go off of that, you know, of
some, maybe some opponents, they would be bitter, they'd be
mad that you pulled out like the day before, the
day after, after they had to weigh in.
But Diego was very like, you know, nothing against Brian.
He just didn't feel good.
He didn't.
He shouldn't have fought.
But I hope we rebooked this and he was very
complimentary of you.
So I guess when you hear Diego, the guy that
this actually affected the most, besides you say all these
things, like, were you just like, alright, yeah, this is
a good guy and we'll just have to go in
there and fight 1000.
Yeah, 100%.
And then can I get your thoughts on the the
main event between Sean and Mirab?
That's a tough one, man.
I just I just took my Rob's hand right now
and I Shuck O'malley's over there.
I've known both of them.
I've seen both of them, you know, met them everything.
And and so one given that I don't even want
to speak because I just don't want to bitter any
relationship.
But if I even if I was to to be
a fan of it right on just a fan side
and not knowing anyone, I don't have an answer for
that one.
Those are one of those few fights that you typically
have one or the other.
And for myself, it is that one's a harder one
because they both have qualities that can take each other
out and it just depends who can use them better.
That Saturday night, it just was lying for me because
I, I just thought of this.
I think on your Instagram, I saw a video clip
you posted about how, like, in the past, you know,
you do grappling and then you go to wrestling and
just be hard on your body.
And I think use the phrase of like, you're kind
of bridging these different styles to create your own style.
So I guess hearing that, can fans expect maybe a
different style of fighting from you in there?
Or is it just when you get in there, I'll
just feel it out and you'll fight against Diego.
Yeah.
The the new version of myself is someone who I
who's actually taking his his job seriously before, like I
mentioned when I was younger, I would just win a
fight.
I would eat jack-in-the-box train in the garage, rolling nonstop,
run a bunch of stairs a bunch of miles, as
long as I wouldn't gas out in three, three rounds.
I was like, we're going to we be all right.
The wake up.
We just kind of winged it.
We had no idea.
We started copying.
People were just saying like, Hey, what are you?
What are you doing?
How does that help?
Very clueless.
But you know, after the Max loss, that was the
first time we decided to take it serious.
Then I won zombie and then, you know, I kind
of decided to just be to be stupid again, you
know, something that's hard to shake after, you know, my
lifestyle.
And then after that, after failing recently hitting rock bottom,
that's kind of when I decided to say you know
what bro?
Like stop self sabotaging yourself because you're afraid of what
you can become.
You know, I was more happy to be part of
the party then you know, I wasn't supposed to be
here.
That was always my mentality.
We weren't even supposed to be getting this checks.
We're probably supposed to be in jail or doing something
else and the fact that we're here is just just
go for the ride.
But now it's different.
Now I take everything serious and now I I just
eat and breathe This even offseason, I'm training twice a
day and I'm I'm coaching some of these guys through
through what I'm learning as well.
And we're just moving man, non-stop.
We've seen for a past high level grapplers like Damian
Maia specifically off the top of my head, he he
said like when he got to the UFC hit that
point where goes, well, I have to kind of embrace
this wrestling a lot more taking fights down.
And when you started to do that, I remember him
saying like, I should have done this years ago.
Did you hit that too?
Like once you start to realize like how do you
can take people down easier?
You can to use your skill set.
Did that Do you ever have that moment in camp?
Yeah, 1000% bro.
This was this was something that was frustrating and I'm
and I'm someone who doesn't like to lose.
So when I'm losing the gym constantly, the people that
in my head I know I can beat that.
That didn't make sense.
So I would disregard the art because of how I
felt then realizing that failure in anything that you do,
that's the only way to get better.
So you just have to embrace that you're going to
suck.
You have to have fun while you're sucking.
And then that's it.
You just, hey, you beat me, you took me down,
you did this, you did that cool, you got me.
Like there's a lot of you got me and a
lot of praise to the whoever, whoever is your partner.
But then after that, there's a a page that turns
where it's like, I'm not that easy anymore.
All of them getting better.
And then that's when it really when it's kind of
it lights up and it sparks because you're like, now
I'm coming for you.
Before I was running, now I'm not running and now
I'm starting to chase.
And that's where the game becomes fun.
And then I'm like, hold up.
And now let me throw in, you know, some other
arts and let me mix things up and let me
take a page out of what Bruce Lee said, where
you know the best artists in the art.
You just, you find all these random techniques from everywhere
and you just have fun with them and use them
at the proper time.
Hey, Brian, over here.
Good to see Brian over here.
Got you.
Good to see you again.
Here for this fight week.
Dana White actually confirmed his social media not that long
ago that you and Habib was actually a possibility for
UFC223, which ended up being with a Quinta.
So I know that fight week was crazy, but I
mean, how would that have played out in your head?
That was what year it was in New York.
Yeah, I remember that.
Yeah.
I was in the backyard.
Dana White called me and said, Hey, man, I believe
it was a short week notice fight.
I don't know how short.
He said, we need someone if I could be bro.
I was like, all right, let's go.
He was like, for real.
I was like, yeah, think he was shocked as well.
And that's that's a match up that, you know, the
whole world's going to say how to get my ass
whooped.
Cool.
You know, but as a, as a, as a martial
artist, there's always been this whole Sambo versus jiu Jitsu,
a wrestling versus jiu Jitsu.
And at that time, before I believed in merging arts,
I was like, they're against each other.
So let's see if I can be a good representative
of being a, a good, you know, subject of being
at the bottom of the fight who can submit someone
or make, make it dangerous for someone who's a, a
well known grappler who just is known for holding you
down and you can't do anything about it.
That's what intrigued me about it.
And, and yeah, it was, it was a hard week.
I got fluid in New York, went over there and
I was on standby like the whole time.
And then I believe Max stepped in and then Max
stepped out and then they call me to step back
in And I was like, bro, I just ate a
like a junior's cheesecake.
Like there's no way I'm making weight.
Like I just, I figured once Max was in that,
that it was over.
It was like, alright, cool, bro.
Like lost your chance.
Oh well.
And when when you like see how far have you
went with his career?
Is that something where kind of wish you did get
a crack at him at some point or another?
I mean, being so close to potentially fought him and
obviously the samba jujitsu battle you mentioned just now.
No, I made peace with the fact that it's never
going to happen and never will happen.
And if anything, I just now just admire what he
did and, and respect everything he's done for the sport.
And just another one from a different perspective from Bon
Ortega, the coaching side of Bon Ortega, we're three years
removed from your Ultimate Ultimate Fighter season and half of
the cast I was with you.
And that show is now on the UFC.
So I guess how does it feel to see all
that come out from your season and how did that
experience change you as a fighter in person?
Not much, man.
It was for me.
It was an experience in my life.
That was it.
It was I got to see what it was like.
You know, you as a fighter, you always come and
watch these shows and you see him on on TV,
you see all that.
And then when I got the call for it, I
actually kind of didn't want it because I was just
maybe I'm not.
I don't fit the part myself in bulk.
We don't really have true rivalry where we hate each
other and we're trying to fight each other the second
we see each other.
So I have no idea how we're going to put
some drama for you guys.
He seems like a laid back guy.
I'm a laid back guy.
Unless you really come poking at me, I won't really
get at you.
So I just didn't know for the UFC sake, I
said, guys, I don't know if I can sell this
the right way.
I said, bro, we just, you were going to fight.
He got COVID.
You guys are both in Vegas, shoot the show.
I was like, all right, done.
That was it.
But to see these guys in there now, obviously you
get to meet them, you get to hang out with
them, play pool.
They're stuck in the house all day.
So all you do is just you know, board games,
pool, you know the pool.
I brought my dad over there.
We had a BBQ for them.
You get to meet them on a personal level.
A lot of them actually flown and stayed, stayed at
my house with me.
Now, you know, Andre Petrotsky is one of them.
He just won I think last week or two weeks
ago.
And he's he's killing it, man.
Yeah, I'm seeing all this Trey, Sean Gore.
I see, you know, Brian Battle is in there killing
it.
All these guys are, are, are doing good.
And it's, you know, it just puts a smile on
my face to see them succeed in their goals.
Hey, Brian over here.
Who would be your dream artist to perform a concert
at the Sphere?
What?
I can't even see.
Sorry, bro.
There we go.
Got you right here.
Who would be your dream artist to perform a concert
at the Sphere?
Morgan Wallin.
Nice.
I would love to see Morgan Wallin at the Sphere.
That walk out would go crazy, huh?
If you ever do perform there, bro, please give me
a ticket.
I got you.
Not you, Morgan Wallin.
But if you.
But if you do get me one, I'll go with
you.
I work for at Vegas, so I got you, Doug,
get at me.
Hey, Brian over here.
I was just wondering if you had a chance to
check out the Craig Jones Invitational and I guess what
was your thoughts on them kind of going head to
head with ADCC?
I, you know what I don't know too much about
like what's going on the jujitsu world like that.
I kind of keep to myself a lot.
A lot of people think it's weird, but that's just
kind of what I do.
I think it's amazing that he has backing and he
can actually get jujitsu practitioners paid.
That's something that it was not ever a thought to
just do jiu jitsu and make that a career.
Only way you were going to be good at jiu
jitsu is winning competitions and running your own school.
But even running your own school would be dependent on
the fact that you can make more reviews.
And who knows if that's possible, right?
Some people are great athletes, but not the best coaches.
You got people that can just do things that no
one's ever seen.
But to to be able to teach that and make
another you, that's, that's that's the hard part.
And to see them now just 1000% just focus on
themselves, their food with their diet, their health training non-stop.
And that'd be a lifestyle and a job that that
you can have and make me literally $1,000,000.
That's crazy.
With all that being said, can we see you grappling
some of these top grapplers if it's for $1,000,000?
Yeah.
Because you know what?
I can't risk getting my ankle broken or something and
then having to mess up my job here.
That's the only problem.
I have no interest unless, you know, there's there's a
good carrot to to get excited about to chase.
Thank you.
Hey, Brian, Right over here.
Yeah.
Brian, I'm wondering, since your last media day in June,
did you ever hear back from the neighbors or anyone
get word to you about how close they were to
losing it?
Check this out.
That was when I lived in the apartment.
When I lived in the apartment because I decided to
fight Volk, I signed a deal and I didn't have
AI didn't even have a home.
I at that time, I separated from, you know, I
separated from my my wife.
We got back together by the time I separated from
her and then she kept the place and I was
just staying with my homie.
But then he lives with his girl and I, you
know, I don't want to be that guy like you
just see walking around your house while you're trying to
live your life.
But I signed the deal and I was like, dude,
I need to stay here for at least two months.
Talk to another friend.
They said, hey, there's a place that does month to
month in these two bedrooms and you can buy yourself,
as I say, last later, bye, I'm gone.
The second if I was done with Vulk, I left.
I bought a house and that was it.
But I have no idea where they're at, what they're
doing.
I'll be honest with you, don't even know what they
look like.
I just know they made a lot of noise.
And my neighbor now, she's amazing.
That is great to hear.
A little bit of business.
There's a lot of, you know, speculation.
What's the sphere going to look like while you guys
are fighting?
Is there any worry at all that it could be
a little distracting?
Obviously there's already a lot to worry about when you're
inside the cage once you can punch in the face.
I don't think I'm going to look at any lights
or any people that simple as that.
You know, the second the lights that go on really
do a good job at kind of blinding the surroundings,
which allow you to focus.
But I haven't fought there and I'm, I'm putting it
in my head that I have to be aware of
the environment so it doesn't mess with me during the
fight.
And that's something I've already kind of calculated in there.
But now I'm, I'm going to do the best to
just admire what it's going to be like to, to
look in One Direction and see 16,000 people in just
One Direction.
That's crazy.
We're used to 18,000 people in T-Mobile and it's a
full circle.
We have 2000 less just in One Direction that and
there's like mount like mountains of them.
So that's going to be that's going to be excited
or exciting.
Final question, very important one, you're obviously well known for
your hair.
Diego's very well known for his hair.
Who's got the better hair out of the two you
guys?
I'm biased, man.
I'm go with myself.
What is your response to him when he said he
thinks he has the better haircut?
No, no, thank you.
Come on.
We're good.
Thank you guys.