"It was very powerful. I sacrificed a lot, my family sacrificed a lot. Now I'm fighting Georges St. Pierre to unify the UFC welterweight titles. He's the best in the world, he's one of the best this sport has ever seen. It's a huge fight with a lot of buzz around it. Those are the kinds of fights I want to be in.
"Georges is a very technical, precise striker. Great jab, great fundamentals. The last 10 years I've really been passionate about this, especially in the last two-to-three years. I've really rediscovered my fire and my drive.
"I'm a different fighter every time I come out. I have a lot of weapons in my arsenal. My strength, my conditioning, my athleticism has come up a considerable amount and just mentally, I'm in a good place. We're at an equal disadvantage. We're both missing Greg (Jackson) who is a big component of our training and our preparation and our strategizing.
"Fighting in front of Georges' hometown might throw a lot of other guys off but mentally, I'm pretty strong. I'll be able to put all that stuff aside and just do what I came to do. I'm on the precipice of achieveing my life goal. I want to fight the best Georges and beat that guy."