TRAINING: 5am - eat 5 raw eggs, run 5 miles. Then I wake up from my dream and drag myself out of my bed at 830 and sip some coffee with some banana bread. I drive half asleep to practice (12-2pm) and proceed to kick my own ass for 2 hours. Eat, sleep, and get back to training at 6pm for cardio, pad work and drilling. That's a wrap.

Thoughts on opponent, Tim Boetsch? Boetsch has got heart for days. That's always something you have to be careful with. Heart, power and toughness have taken him a long way. But it stops right here - April 26, UFC 172, it's nighty night for Boetsch.

When and why did you start training for fighting? I started training MMA when I was 22 because I liked to fight and needed a job. I also had been training different disciplines for most of my life, from judo to wrestling to jiu-jitsu, so I knew I could compete at a high level.

What ranks and titles have you held? Strikeforce middleweight champion, California high school wrestling state qualifier. Blue belt and purple belt world champion in jiu-jitsu. Currently a brown belt in jiu-jitsu.

Do you have any heroes? No specific heroes, just a lot of people I look up to and try to learn from.

Did you go to college and if so what degree did you earn? Yes, no degrees though; I dropped out to fight and pursue my dreams.

What was your job before you started fighting? Construction / solar panel installation.

Specific accomplishments in pro competition? I never sat on the stool.

Favorite grappling technique: Wrestling / jiu-jitsu

Favorite striking technique: Kickboxing

•    Pro since 2007

•    Five wins by submission, four by KO

•    Has won 10 of his last 11

•    Nine first round finishes

•    Has gone the five round championship distance twice