I love working with Byron Saxton and Jerry Lawler, and I hope I continue to do so.

Everything is WrestleMania to me.

I go into calling any match, any fight - I don't care if it's the main event or the opener - that these guys have put in their work: they're here for a reason, and there's a reason I'm calling this fight, so I do want to give it as much attention and respect and energy as I would the main event or a championship fight.

There would be no Mauro Ranallo in MMA, or maybe even period, to be truly honest with you... without Bas Rutten's friendship, mentorship, and just belief in my talents.

I was brought into the life of one Bas Rutten in 2001 at a grappling tournament that I was attending to support a friend of mine. I had never met Bas before but, of course, knew who he was: the King of Pancrase, UFC Heavyweight champion, and the commentator with Pride.

For me, at a very young age, I knew I wanted to be in the entertainment industry; I wanted to be an announcer. I was very smitten at an early age with the voice I heard coming from a radio.

I believe every one of us has a gift, I believe every one of us human beings has a path in this life, and it is up to each of us, through circumstance, through knowledge, through awareness, through luck - and luck does play a huge part - to hopefully achieve that path and walk the path and realize the gift.

All I can say is that WWE and its entire machinery has been nothing but a joy to work with. I'm not just saying that because I'm paid to or that I'm a member of the company. I have criticized WWE in the past, but I am still a big fan of the product.

WWE, in the back of my mind, was always the dream job, and most people don't get their dream jobs.

My job, live television, broadcasting, there's mania involved in there, too, but it's the good stuff.

It's a daily struggle for me to stay alive. I don't mean to be melodramatic, hyperbolic, or go into my broadcast mode. But even that, my career is bipolar.

I'm a perfectionist and my own worst critic.

I love the preparation before a fight. I love to research, and the process of finding little-known information to use when I'm calling a fight is incredible for me.

There is a beauty and a special quality in being what I am. I know it, and I've learned how to use it.

We need to treat people with mental illness like people.

I don't care about me being vulnerable or embarrassing situations.

I am bipolar, and I am a full manifestation of it in terms of my speech, in terms of my energy.

Joining WWE has always been a lifelong dream of mine.

For me, being a part of the halcyon days of Pride Fighting Championships and then watching the explosion of the UFC following the 'Ultimate Fighter,' I've been fortunate to be in the right place at the right time.

There is danger involved in combat sports, but this is the purest form of competition. It's all about finding the truth. When you put someone in a cage or a ring, you're going to find out the truth - not only about your opponent but about yourself as well.

I've always loved kickboxing.

I think the healthier Bellator can be, the better it is for the entire sport, especially the athletes who - let's face it - need to be paid more. They need the opportunity to negotiate and have an option. Bellator definitely presents that.

One of my first heroes was Jim Robson, the hall-of-fame broadcaster with the Canucks and Hockey Night in Canada, and Jim Ross with the WWE and Howard Cosell was a big influence on me.

We all know the difference between sports entertainment and the combat sports that I call, but at the end of the day, they are all spawned from the same source, and there's a lot of mutual respect between the two bodies.