Hopefully in 2011 the fans will get to see some fights that they want to see. Manny Pacquiao Vs. Floyd Mayweather needs to happen, and so does David Haye Vs. Wladimir Klitschko. The fans deserve to see fights that they want to see and not just the fights that the promoters want to see.
Dream fights are just what fans are talking about. We need to see fights that people are actually supposed to see.
The fans want to see more. They're there to see fights, they want to see more, they want to see people get put unconscious, whatever. But you can't get put in those spots.
We as fighters always want to fight the best possible opponents and the best fights. We want the fans and media to be excited about the fights that we have. I now believe that this is a big fight and people want to see it, I'm not sure that was the case a few years back.
I did see the Yahoo Sports story Kevin Iole wrote about how the ratings for TUF go up when there's a women's fight in the episode. I can't lie: it felt really good to see that the UFC fans - not only MMA fans but fans of the UFC who maybe hadn't seen any female fights before February of this year - look forward to watching the women fights so much.
I'm trying to give the fans fights they want to see.
I want to fight the fights that fans want to see.
The UFC wants to put on shows that the fans want to see, and if the fans want to see you fight someone, that's what's going to happen.
You look at boxing being an international, world-famous sport, right up there next with soccer, and there's only two fighters the people want to see fight. Two little fellows, Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather.
Exciting fighters put on exciting fights, and that's what fans want to see.
The baseball fights, you don't ever see the squaring off like you do in hockey, and in some instances, that's where baseball fights can be potentially more dangerous because you've got guys running all over the place and people throwing punches at you that you don't even see half the time.
I just want fights like that. Fights that get me excited. Fights that are going to be exciting.
I want to make great fights, emotional fights, for all my fans and everyone watching.
There's plenty of people I don't like that we put fights on with. It's not up to me whether I like them or dislike them, it's what the fans want to see.
These kinds of fights, these big fights that get everyone talking and interested, these are the fights I want.
We want Bellator to be a destination for not only the top-tier fighters in the sport, but the first-choice destination for fans to see the most entertaining fights in the sport.
Obviously, it's disappointing when you put on a shirt and get negative feedback, but at the same time, it's what the fans want to see; they want to see you perform well.