The Triangle Choke: Matt Lindland Interview
Matt “The Law” Lindland makes his return to battle on December 19 live on Showtime at Strikeforce: Evolution. Lindland, 21-6 will compete in Strikeforce where he will battle the dangerous Jacare Souza. Lindland, a 2000 Olympic Silver Medalist, took some time to speak with Pro Fighting Fans Editor-in-Chief Scott Dryden during a break from training. For the complete Strikeforce Evolution fight card & results look to ProFighting-fans.com.
SD- Matt, you took some heavy shots in your last bout against Vitor Belfort. Talk about the recovery process and how long it took you to get back on your feet.
ML- Did I take some big shots in that fight (laughs)? I don’t remember. That fight was so darn quick. I think I zigged when I should have zagged. Vitor is so quick he caught me with a straight left. There was literally no recovery time for that at all. It was a good shot and quick knockout. There was no real damage at all - you just have to let your brain rest for a month or so. I didn’t do any punching just some grappling and wrestling stuff. Then after a month or so you get back to your regular training.
SD- You recently signed with Strikeforce who is growing by leaps and bounds. They have television deals with both Showtime and CBS. Speak about this opportunity.
ML- It’s fantastic. There is only one big show out there that people know about and that is the UFC. We need another show that is on the same level with the same caliber of fighters. People tend to think that anything other than the UFC is a second tier product and that’s just not the case. You’ve got guys like Rob Lawler, Fedor, Jake Shields and guys like that in this organization so there is no way you can say this is a 2nd tier league. It’s a great opportunity to fight for a good organization that is getting some good television exposure.
SD- You will have your hands full against Jacare Souza. He is 10-2 with one of the losses against the great Gegard Mousasi via what could be described as a fluke up-kick. What challenges does Jacare present for you?
ML- Obviously he is a young, athletic guy. He is an explosive athlete who throws nice straight punches. It’s tough to stay on your feet with a guy like him then on the ground you have to be very cognitive of what he is doing. You cannot let him get started. You either keep him on his feet or attack him on the ground so he cannot get going.
SD- How are you feeling right now from a training perspective?
ML- I doing great and I’m healthy. Even if I wasn’t I wouldn’t tell the media (laughs). Fortunately I am feeling fantastic.
SD- Yeah that is a question I normally don’t ask because the answer is obvious (laughter).
> Check out the newly-expanded selection of MMA apparel & merchandise available online through Pro Fighting Fans including Affliction clothing, Dirty Boxer MMA gear & more!
SD- How is Team Quest going? You mentioned opening another gym...
ML- We are growing by leaps and bounds. This economy is tough for all small business owners so we are just trying to find a way to expand our business. Besides the gym that I run and the gym that Dan Henderson runs; we have two other locations here in Oregon and we just opened our second location in California. I’m on my way to look another location to possibly expand the gym.
SD- Congrats on that Matt and good luck against Jacare on December 19th at the Strikeforce event.
By Scott Dryden
ProFighting-fans.com MMA Staff Writer & Editor in Chief