A biography for Demian Maiahasn’t been written yet.
“I think sometimes the fighters aren't very clear on things, and even myself, I'm a fighter, a lot of fighters make mistakes about working their image and how they market themselves.”
“A lot of people came up to me and said you need to trash talk. That's not me.”
“I think that people believe in lies and they repeat the lies so many times that the people start to believe, 'ah, Demian is not fighting for the title because he doesn't sell.'”
“I always try and use my jiujitsu to win fights. That's my favorite method of securing victory.”
“The difference between me and other black belts is that I truly believe that jujitsu can be used in all aspects of MMA, because it was created to do that. If you train hard, it will work.”
“It's hard to be in the UFC one year.”
“I was always very, very focused, just thinking about the title.”
“We are athletes, and we work very hard in our way to the title.”
“My jiu-jitsu is very good, and anytime I'm able to show what my coaches and my team are capable of doing, I really enjoy it.”
“I don't like to have a strategy going into a fight. If he has a good right hand or a good kick or good submissions then I'll try to avoid that, but I like to be in a fight and I like to go into the fight. Even in jiu-jitsu I didn't think of pulling this guy into guard or take him down because I like to go into the fight and see what happens.”
“Jiu-jitsu is very 'democratic,' it does not matter how you are physically - it is all about your mind, and a lot of technique.”
“In the 1930s, in boxing, to be the heavyweight champion of the world was really, really big, people wanted to see the toughest guys. But what I've figured out now, in the '50s, '60s, boxing started to become more entertainment than sport.”
“I'm a jiu-jitsu guy and that's my root.”
“You can trade money for other good things and that's nice, but it's not the first thing that matters to me. I'm a martial artist and I have other priorities.”
“When I was 16, we get kicked out of our house because my mother and my father were separated, so we didn't have money to pay. We got kicked out and had to live with my grandmother, sleeping in the living room, for many years.”
“Sometimes I don't talk too much, that's myself, but I truly believe I can be the champion. I feel, I can visualize that.”
“I always try to improve my stand-up game, it's very important for me.”
“I want to be remembered as a guy who goes out and represents the art of jiu-jitsu.”
“You can't compare my background to the Gracies', not only in technique, but in terms of business and marketing.”