 |
Interview w/Matt Lindland
Reported By: Boxing Insider - 03.06.2003 09:05 PM
Featured: Ken Shamrock's Lion's Den Clothing
The following interview was conducted by Ryan Bennett of MMAWeekly.com
INTERVIEW OF THE WEEK: MATT LINDLAND
Some say he couldn't do it, some said that his first fight was a fluke. This past weekend Matt Lindland answered all his critics and showed the world that he is one of the best fighters at 185 pounds. Lindland sat down and talked with Ryan Bennett about his biggest win to date in his professional fight career.
Ryan Bennett: So you got to be a pretty happy guy right now, how are things?
Matt Lindland: Good, I just got back from the Portland Trailblazers basketball game and it's been a great weekend.
Ryan: Did you get noticed at the NBA game?
Matt: Not really, I had a guy I had not seen before that said "good job" and there was a couple of guys that I went to high school with that said, "That's Matt Lindland" but that's about it.
Ryan: Give me your impressions of the fight with Baroni, you have to have a big smile on your face.
Matt: Yea I'm excited about it. Getting a win in the UFC is always good. Every fight in this UFC at this level is a big fight. There aren't any little fights anymore in the UFC.
Ryan: A lot of people said coming into this fight that Phil Baroni is a better fighter now, that your first fight was when he wasn't very good, etc. Did that piss you off going into this fight?
Matt: I'm still looking for the excuses to come. The first fight he couldn't even admit that he lost. I think he still denies he didn't lose. I think he will have an excuse for this fight, like he was hurt, or his hand was hurt, whatever. I know before the fight he was letting everyone know how hard he was training. The excuses will start coming whether it's if he came into the fight injured or whatever. He can't and probably won't accept that I'm a better fighter than he is.
Ryan: How much sweeter is it for you to beat Phil Baroni a second time?
Matt: To me it doesn't matter, but he makes it such a big deal that it actually makes it a bigger deal for me. I actually had a lot of fun with the banter and smack talk going back and forth. I don't think I could talk like that to a lot of other fighters. I can't throw insults at other guys, but I think he opens himself up to that, so he made it easier for me and made it more fun. I wanted to put a beating on him.
Ryan: Did you have a chance to watch the fight yet?
Matt: Yea I did actually.
Ryan: Tell me your impressions of the fight. What did you like and what didn't you like?
Matt: I liked everything about the fight. I was watching the fight thinking I could have thrown my lead right here or thought I had a lot of opportunites to throw some more standup that I didn't take advantage of. My goal was not to use the stand up to win the fight. I just wanted to use it enough to get in and take him down. In the third round I was going to do a little standup because he wasn't aggressive. I knew he had to come at me for me to get under him. It wasn't like I could just shoot in on him. I did take advantage of the beginning of the third round. I was a bit disappointed in the call for both of us to stand up by Big John (McCarthy) becaues I just felt like I was landing the best three or four elbows of the fight and I had so much momentum at that particular time...
Ryan: Why do you think then he had you guys stand up at that point of the fight?
Matt: I really don't know. Maybe John wanted to make sure Phil didn't have any excuses. The only thing I can think of is that he was thinking you guys need to stand up so Phil doesn't have any excuses why he lost the fight. I don't think John intentionally tried to screw me there, I think he felt it may be more exciting for the fans I guess, or Phil, it was weird.
Ryan: It was a bit strange and I know John and think he is the best in the business, but it seemed you even had a shot to finish him at that point...
Matt: I did too. What can you do.
Ryan: Speaking of that third round, he ended that round with those wicked body shots. What were you thinking at the end of that fight?!
Matt: I was thinking, man this round is over, what the hell is taking so long. (laughs) I shot in and there was six seconds left on the clock and he sprawled, so there had to be 6,5,4,3,2, and the fight has to be over. Then it was like, Hello wake up the guy ringing the bell. Those last six second must have taken 30 seconds. In the first round those punches really didn't have much steam so I wasn't worried. Body shots aren't going to finish a fight anyway...
Ryan: So you are telling me those body shots didn't hurt?
Matt: No. They look great and he's yelling like he was doing something but they didn't really hurt. I remember after the fight I felt fine and I remember thinking when I wake up in the morning I'm going to be hurting, but I was actually fine when I woke up. They didn't hurt at all when I woke up.
Ryan: At the press conference you thanked a few people including John Hackelman from the Pit Fight Team. Are you part of that team now?
Matt: I actually said my new adopted team. I then thanked Randy (Couture) and Dan (Henderson) for being my cornerman and supporting me. I just wanted to thank John and the guys who really helped me out.
Ryan: So you are still a part of Team Quest...
Matt: Absolutely I am.
Ryan: What's next for you now...
Matt: I don't know. Let's call Dana (laughs) and see what's going to happen. I would like to know. I would love to fight in April. I just don't really know who is out there to fight. It seems like we have answered a lot of questions in this division so it's hard to say who is still out there.
Ryan: I just found out that Jeremy Horn is coming down to 185 weight division. What about a guy like that...
Matt: Really? That's great. That guy is a submission expert. He is SO slick. I had no idea.
Ryan: Yea one of my guys just found out and I think that would be great for the division.
Matt: It would be. I would like to see him fight somebody in the UFC if that happens, because I feel like I've proved myself as the guy who gets the next title shot. He would be great at that weight. He's a great fighter.
Ryan: One more question about Baroni. We saw what he did to Dave Menne. We saw what he did to Suloev. Why is it that you were able to neutralize Phil Baroni? It seems you have his number.
Matt: I think he caught Menne. I don't that would happen every time he fights Dave Menne. That's the nature of the sport. Sometimes you are going to get quick knockouts and sometimes you don't have it that day. As far as Phil goes, I think he didn't train much on the ground for this fight. I'm guessing because I don't watch guys train, but it didn't look like he anticipated this fight being on the ground long. You would think he would have planned for something like this, but I really don't think he did. He didn't prepare what could happen on the ground. He was so confident that he could get the job done by standing up. Those other guys you mention didn't get out of the first round with him. Let's see how they do with Phil Baroni in round two or three, it could have been a different fights for those guys you mentioned.
Ryan: What happened to the t-shirt at the weigh-in that said I got beat by a hillbilly?
Matt: Some Japanese photographer picked it up and I caught him wearing it after the fight (laughs)
Ryan: That's hilarious! (laughs)
Matt: Yea I actually signed that shirt!
Ryan: I was just thinking that, make some of those, sign it and it will be a big hit on ebay.
Matt: I've got two more, so maybe I should do it....Yea it was funny it said "I just got beat down by a hillbilly AGAIN." It was funny.
Ryan: How did that come about?
Matt: You were there at the first weigh-in for our first fight and you saw the stunt where he tried to reach out and grab my neck...so I anticipated something so I just threw him off and came a little prepared. I showed the press the shirt and said I have a gift for Phil and threw it at him. He threw it back to me, so I told one of his corner guys, Give this to Phil, it's a gift from me. Big John got the interception, Lorenzo held it up for everyone to see, then he grabs that from Lorenzo and stomps on it, he was pissed. It was beautiful. But you guys didn't see the shirt I put on after the fight...
Ryan: No I didn't what did it say...
Matt: It said I just beat Phil Baroni AGAIN and all I got was this lousy T-Shirt.
Ryan: Funny stuff. Well congrats that was a huge win for you and I look forward to seeing what is next. Thanks Matt I always appreciate.
Matt: You got it Ryan. I will let you guys know what's up next for me right here at MMAWeekly.
MMAweekly.com - The Best MMA Videos - Join Today!
LetsGetCredit.com - Apply for a Credit Card NOW!
WrestlingDotCom.com - Pro Wrestling News & More!
|
|
|
