UFC 52: Couture vs. Liddell II Preview
Travis Lutter vs. Matt Lindland
Apr 13, 2005
LUTTER: Carlos Machado black belt Travis Lutter is 5-1 in MMA and
runs his own BJJ and kickboxing academy in Texas. Lutter is a
two-time Abu Dhabi World Championships competitor and the 1999 and
2000 HOOK’n’SHOOT National ADCC Qualifier champion for submission
grappling as well as an Ultimate Submissions veteran. He has
trained with UFC veterans Guy
Mezger and Alex Andrade
of the Texas Lion’s Den, but he did most of his training for this
fight with his own camp including Kenny McClure, Brad Rehor, Wes
Gann and Roy Hall.
Lutter’s only loss is to UFC veteran Jorge Rivera at the Ring of Fury 2 show where the ref stopped the match late in the third round. Travis won his H’n’S light heavyweight championship at the HOOK’n’SHOOT: Relentless show in 2002. There he defeated Chris Munsen by rear-choke in the first round. An overhand right nearly sent Munsen out of the ring and Lutter jumped on his back, working in the rear choke for the win in just 45 seconds. Travis knocked out Muay Thai fighter Marvin Eastman early in the second round in Lutter’s octagon debut last October at UFC 50.
LINDLAND: Greco-Roman wrestler Matt Lindland has a 13-3 record in
MMA and is a five-time national champion, three-time Pan-Am
champion, World Cup champion and a 2000 Olympic Silver medalist.
The former IFC middleweight champion and Abu Dhabi veteran trains
with Dan Henderson,
Randy Couture, Chael Sonnen and members of Team
Quest.
Since debuting in MMA in 1997, Lindland has usually impressed but rarely thrilled spectators with his “blue collar” style. He’s beaten numerous big name fighters in the UFC including Ricardo Alemida, Phil Baroni (twice), Pat Miletich, Ivan Salaverry and Falaniko Vitale (in a rematch). When you add the fact he beat UFC veterans Travis Fulton, Anthony Fryklund and Mark Weir away from the Octagon, it is clear why Lindland ranks at the top of the division.
He has three losses in his last nine fights. The first was to former middleweight champion Murilo Bustamante in the title bout. Bustamante owned that fight and literally beat Lindland twice, finally submitting him with a guillotine choke in the third round. Matt lost to “Niko” Vitale in a flash knockout and then was knocked out by up-and-comer David Terrell in UFC 49. Since the loss Matt is 2-0 and anxious to get back in title contention.
MY PICK: Lindland. Matt wasn’t able to show much against Terrell but I think we would’ve seen a much improved stand-up game from him. Though he first fought in ’98, Lutter has competed sporadically over the years and is relatively new to the MMA scene. He is looking to establish himself and a win here goes a long way. To the contrary, this is a winnable comeback fight for Matt against an unseasoned but dangerous divisional competitor. A win for Matt could also mean another shot at Terrell or a match with former teammate and titleholder Evan Tanner. It may not be pretty, but I feel Lindland will take a decision.
Lutter’s only loss is to UFC veteran Jorge Rivera at the Ring of Fury 2 show where the ref stopped the match late in the third round. Travis won his H’n’S light heavyweight championship at the HOOK’n’SHOOT: Relentless show in 2002. There he defeated Chris Munsen by rear-choke in the first round. An overhand right nearly sent Munsen out of the ring and Lutter jumped on his back, working in the rear choke for the win in just 45 seconds. Travis knocked out Muay Thai fighter Marvin Eastman early in the second round in Lutter’s octagon debut last October at UFC 50.
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Since debuting in MMA in 1997, Lindland has usually impressed but rarely thrilled spectators with his “blue collar” style. He’s beaten numerous big name fighters in the UFC including Ricardo Alemida, Phil Baroni (twice), Pat Miletich, Ivan Salaverry and Falaniko Vitale (in a rematch). When you add the fact he beat UFC veterans Travis Fulton, Anthony Fryklund and Mark Weir away from the Octagon, it is clear why Lindland ranks at the top of the division.
He has three losses in his last nine fights. The first was to former middleweight champion Murilo Bustamante in the title bout. Bustamante owned that fight and literally beat Lindland twice, finally submitting him with a guillotine choke in the third round. Matt lost to “Niko” Vitale in a flash knockout and then was knocked out by up-and-comer David Terrell in UFC 49. Since the loss Matt is 2-0 and anxious to get back in title contention.
MY PICK: Lindland. Matt wasn’t able to show much against Terrell but I think we would’ve seen a much improved stand-up game from him. Though he first fought in ’98, Lutter has competed sporadically over the years and is relatively new to the MMA scene. He is looking to establish himself and a win here goes a long way. To the contrary, this is a winnable comeback fight for Matt against an unseasoned but dangerous divisional competitor. A win for Matt could also mean another shot at Terrell or a match with former teammate and titleholder Evan Tanner. It may not be pretty, but I feel Lindland will take a decision.
