Undefeated Ryan 'Darth' Bader, winner of the eight installment of "The Ultimate Fighter", has recovered from an MCL injury back in April and is ready to resume his assault on the UFC's light heavyweight division. Bader (10-0) will be returning to action on October 24 against Eric Schafer at "UFC 104: Machida vs Shogun" in Los Angeles. MMA Spot's Hugh Spencer grabbed a few moment's to talk to the rising star about his injury recovery, his opponent, his training, and life as a reality TV star.

- While preparing for Schafer, what do you see will be his advantage/strength in this fight?

His advantage is definitely on the ground, but I am no slouch there either. He is also a very strong guy, with Octagon time under his belt. I have fought many black belts and am not afraid of a person with a certain color of belt; I am going to go in there and impose my will on my opponent and fight my fight.

- You recently tore your medial collateral ligament (MCL) in your fight with Carmelo Marrero. How did you feel after rehabilitating the injury and does it cause you any problems while you train?

I took some time off right after it happened and now have been training full go on it for over three months. It is 100% and is not even a factor anymore.

- Who were some of your motivators/inspirations to start competing in MMA?

C.B. Dollaway and I were helping our friend, Jesse Forbes, out when he had a fight scheduled with Matt Hamill. We just got out of college wrestling and he needed some wrestlers to work with so we started doing some submissions with him. C.B. and I both liked it so we went to his MMA gym at Arizona Combat Sports and never left.

- Do you feel a lot of pressure from the organization to win because of the notoriety you’ve gained from the show?

I think everybody feels that pressure in the UFC. One loss can really set you back. I do think there is more of a target on my back from winning 'TUF', just for the fact that some people don’t give that show any credit, and feel that it is an easy way to UFC, etc.

- What is the funniest thing that went on the 'TUF' house that we did not see on television?

Well, as you know, our season was pretty disgusting. But the tipping point came when Tom Lawlor was about to eat a spoon full of Kyle Kingsbury’s sh*t. He got it up to his mouth, but couldn’t do it.

Check out the full interview HERE