Interview w/ "The Law" Matt Lindland (part 1)
Reported By: Chris Colderley - 06.30.2003 02:19 AM
“Laying Down the “LAW”
Matt, the “LAW,” Lindland talks with Boxing Insider
By Chris Colderley ©
Olympic Silver Medalist, Matt Lindland has made a smooth transition from Greco-Roman wrestling to the world of mixed martial arts. He is considered by many fans the number one middleweight in the UFC and is consistently ranked as one of the top middleweights in the world.
In his last UFC fight with Falaniko Vitale, Lindland received a loss after knocking himself unconscious from a botched belly-to-belly throw. Despite the setback, Lindland remains confident in his abilities and is resolved to become the UFC middleweight champion as soon as the opportunity presents itself.
In part 1 of this interview with Chris Colderley, Lindland talks about his recent match with Falaniko Vitale and comments on his epic battle with Phil Baroni at UFC 41.
In part 2, Lindland reflects on training with Chuck Liddell and John Hackleman, discusses his feelings about the light heavyweight championship between Liddell and, his teammate and friend, Randy Couture, and describes his latest efforts to market Team Quest.
In part 3, Matt talks about the state of the UFC middleweight division and ponders potential future match-ups. He also comments on the evolution of MMA and the contributions of Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture to the sport.
BoxingInsider.com: Matt, I want to start off with a couple of questions that I regret I have to ask.
Matt Lindland: No, go ahead.
Photo: TXMMA.com
BoxingInsider.com: You have probably answered these about fourteen times. First of all, how are you doing since the Vitale fight?
Matt Lindland: I am doing fine. I have a big knot in the back of my head. Other than that, I am fine.
BoxingInsider.com: The second question: what happened?
Matt Lindland: What happened? I hit my head on a piece of steel . . . My head touched the canvas and underneath it there was exposed steel covered by the mat. Before the fight, the British fighter, Ian Freeman and I were in the ring and we were stepping in these holes all over the mat. My first thought was somebody is going to twist an ankle. I bent down, I felt the holes, and I was knocking on them – tap, tap. I said to Dana [White], who was sitting in the first row just waiting for people to start moving into the arena, “What’s underneath here: plywood?”
He said, “There’s no plywood underneath. There’s just metal, but the pad is there.”
I said, “Come in here. Get in the ring and feel this.”
He came in, and Joe Silva came in. They both felt the mat, and looked at the guy that put the ring together, like what’s going on?
He told them, “We haven’t changed this pad in 15 shows and it gets torn up hauling it in and out of the truck. I covered the holes with tape.”
We had a layer of tape over the steel, and then we had the canvas, on some areas of the mat!
I don’t know. What would happen in boxing if a fighter leans up against the ropes and the ring collapses and he falls into the crowd and knocks his head on the cement? How would they rule that fight?
BoxingInsider.com: That’s a good question. I guess it would depend on how long the fight had gone on.
Matt Lindland: Has it ever happened? Where the ring broke or something like that?
BoxingInsider.com: I am sure it has – a case where the ring straps have broken and somebody has fallen through, but I believe it was after the time it would be considered a technical draw. If it was after the fourth round, they would have went to the score cards. That’s an excellent question, but I can’t say for sure.
[Note: I have been told by Rusty Rubin, managing editor of Ringsports, in boxing, if no punch was thrown the result would be a no decision. If the incident was the result of a punch, it would be scored a knockout for the fighter who threw the punch.]
Matt Lindland: I was just curious. I’m not interested in protesting the outcome of that fight at all. I’m just looking to rematch him in the next show and prove that it wouldn’t happen again. That was kind of a [fluke] because of the faulty ring.
I don’t necessarily want to go to the trouble of trying to get a no contest. It’s irrelevant to me what my record says. I know where I am at; what level of fighter I am.
BoxingInsider.com: Speaking of rematches, it appears that, before the year is out, there is going to be a middleweight tournament and possible rematches with Vitale, as well as Phil Baroni. How do you feel about that?
Matt Lindland: I will fight anybody. I don’t care; I would fight Phil Baroni again. He isn’t the fighter he thinks he is, and he isn’t the fighter he personifies himself as. He’s built himself up bigger than he is, and good for him. He’s done a great job of marketing and self promotion. I don’t believe, [however], that losing two fights – they weren’t even close fights – deserves another rematch. I think he needs to beat some guys.
I have a guy here that I train with everyday that would love to fight Phil at 185 lbs. He would love a shot at the UFC. Phil asked me, when I was in Vegas training at John Lewis’ school, about that kid.
I said, “Oh yeah, Phil, he wants to fight you.”
Phil said, “He should.”
I told Phil, “If you beat him, then, I’ll fight you.”
BoxingInsider.com: What is his name?
Matt Lindland: His name is Chael Sonnen. I would have no problem fighting Phil Baroni again. I’ll beat him three times; I’ll beat him four times. I would like to see Chael get an opportunity at the UFC first, and I would like to see that fight happen. I don’t think Phil is good enough to beat my training partner, let alone beat me.
BoxingInsider.com: The whole series of events leading up to the Phil Baroni rematch were uncharacteristic of you. You are usually very calm, very modest.
Photo: TXMMA.com
Matt Lindland: I still think . . . I didn’t – I took the high road! I never came out and bashed Phil. I took what he said and I used it against him. He called me a “hillbilly.” I though that’s fine: “You got your ass kicked by a hillbilly once, and you are going to get it kicked again!” That’s when I gave him the gift, before the fight, at the weigh-ins. That’s all I was getting at: “Say what you want about me, Phil. That’s fine. You can call me woogie, whatever you want.” The fans know I am not the one that has posed for gay magazines. People know who’s who. There’s not a big discrepancy on “who” that is.
I don’t think that I ever said anything uncharacteristic. I never came out and bashed Phil. He said I wasn’t a very good fighter, and he’s lost to me twice. What does that make him? Does it make him a guy that deserves a chance at the title? He lost to a guy twice that’s a terrible fighter by his own admission . . . I don’t think Phil was ready for me to defend myself – verbally, as well as physically in the arena.
You can attack me, and I will laugh along with you. I think Phil takes this stuff a little more personally than I do. It’s all fun, and Phil has done a great job of marketing himself. Being soft spoken doesn’t really get you the recognition that a loudmouth gets. I will step up when I am challenged to.
BoxingInsider.com: I was looking at a list of your wrestling accomplishments, and I would probably need six pages to print them all out. Not just yourself, and not just your team mate, Randy Couture, but a lot of wrestlers tend to be very humble and modest. They don’t tend to call out their opponents or trash talk. Is there something about a wrestling background that makes you like that?
Matt Lindland: I have to say most traditional martial artists, and I consider wrestling a traditional martial art, are very respectful. That’s what the sport teaches you: character qualities and respect. [Modesty] is one of those character qualities. I think people that have never achieved anything of any importance, are looking for that recognition somehow. I think that’s what Phil is striving for when he is doing that. I think he’s lacking his own personal achievements; so of course, he’s going to go out and try to make a name for himself by being a loudmouth. That’s one way to do it.
Stay tuned for parts 2 and 3 this week.
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