When you see names like Dan Hardy, Paul Daley and Carlos Condit on a list you would assume it to be a who’s who of contenders for a welterweight championship. For current Strikeforce and MMA veteran Patrick Healy (22-15) those names are just another night’s work in the cage. Over the course of his career Healy has faced the cream of the crop at 170 lbs. and now he prepares to do the same in the lightweight division. This Saturday at “Strikeforce and M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Werdum” at the HP Pavillion in San Jose California, Healy will face former lightweight champion and perennially top ranked fighter Josh “The Punk” Thomson. BJPenn.com’s Pedro Carrasco caught up with Healy as he finished up his preparation for Saturday night’s bout and when asked about facing Thomson he said…
“I definitely think he is a top ten 155. He’s been around for years and he’s always been around the top of the class. He’s really well rounded and he does pretty much everything well. I think I have the style to beat him and I think I’ve really focused on the things I’ve needed to do to be victorious in this fight. The biggest strength he posses is his speed. He uses his quickness to set the range and move a lot. I think if I just follow him around the ring it will be a tough fight for me. If I put the handcuffs on him and make it a rough, tough fight I’ll grind out the victory.”
Healy’s most recent outing came at Strikeforce Challengers: “Lindland vs. Casey”. In front of his hometown crowd he defeated Thomson’s teammate at AKA Brain Travers in an action packed fight where Healy outworked and outperformed the up and coming prospect. The fight also marked the Strikeforce debut for Healy and when asked what that fight meant to him he replied…
“I felt really good about the last fight. It was great to be in my hometown of Portland. I haven’t fought there in quite a few years so it’s always fun to fight in front of the home crowd. It was great to get in on the Challengers show and I feel like I really made a name for myself and opened some people’s eyes. I feel like people expected him to win that fight because he was a top prospect that people kind of had their eyes on. I think I went out and fought well and with that win I cemented myself here in Strikeforce as being somebody to watch.”
The Oregon native began his professional career at the age of 18 and trains with one of the highest regard camps in all of mixed martial arts: Team Quest. When Healy was asked what it meant to be a part of such a legendary camp and how he got his start Healy replied…
“I’ve been fighting for almost nine years now. I got into it when I was 18 and Oregon is one of the few states that actually have a good amateur program for MMA. I was lucky enough to get involved in it. I wrestled in high school and college and I’ve been training since I was 15 or 16 doing Brazilian jiu-jitsu and just rounding out the game. Nowadays you have to train everything so that is what I’ve been doing. I love Team Quest. It’s all about a great attitude and a real strong team. It’s a great atmosphere of hard work and everybody has a strong will to win. We have a lot of wrestlers and a lot guys that have been in Olympic program for years and they really bring that hard work and attitude that Team Quest is known for.”
When Pat Healy faces Josh Thomson this Saturday night it will be the Portland native’s second fight in five weeks. Most fighters take at least 3 months off between bouts but when Strikeforce needed an opponent to face Josh Thomson, Healy stepped up without question. Healy was asked what ultimately made him decide to take a second fight in under two months and if his health was any factor in the decision.
“There was no hesitation because this is such a big opportunity. To be on the card with Fedor…he draws so much attention and to face Josh Thomson with him having such a good fight against Gil last year, it was really just too big of an opportunity to pass up. After I won that fight I spoke with Matt Lindland and we were talking about how Josh didn’t have an opponent for this fight so we knew it might be a possibility. Right after that fight I got right back in the gym and stayed ready in case this opportunity came up which it did. I am 100 percent and everything is going good. It’s actually kind of nice because I didn’t have to push my cardio because it is already there. I can just focus on the things that I need to do to beat Josh Thomson.”
Healy has spent the majority of his career facing larger fighters at 170 lbs. His record reads like a resume to the upperclass of the welterweight division but Healy feels as if his days in that division are behind him. The Thomson fight will be Healy’s third fight at 155 lbs. and since his drop to the lighter weight Healy has been unbeaten in all three attempts. When asked what prompted him to drop the weight and if he holds the victories over certain fighters in higher regard than others he replied…
“I’ve always been a smaller welterweight. I’ve only really ever weight 175 lbs and I’ve been caught in no man’s land. I’ve always been pretty lean and for years I tried to move up weight but I just couldn’t do it. I got more committed about my diet and doing the things I needed to do to get my weight down. 155 lbs. is definitely the place for me and I feel great here. I’m definitely proud to have those victories over guys like Hardy and Daley who have been having success in the UFC. Especially with me dropping to 155 lbs…I think I can build a pretty strong base and prove how good I am.”
A win over Josh Thomson would propel Pat Healy’s career to unknown heights and it’s a destination Healy feels he is ready to see. With Thomson being a former champion, a victory on Saturday night would certainly throw Healy into the mix for contention in the lightweight division. When asked if he felt defeating Thomson put him in line for a shot at Gilbert Melendez’s crown he replied…
“You know I don’t think they’ll just throw me up in that spot but I’d be happy to fight K.J. Noons or Lyle Beerbohm, but I’d fight whoever I needed to in order to cement myself as the next contender for Gil’s crown.”
The final words are always reserved for the fans and as the interview came to a close, Healy took a minute to remind the mixed martial arts community why “Thomson vs. Healy” was not the fight that you want to miss. He also thanked all of the fans and sponsors for their support on the road he has traveled that now leads to San Jose and Josh Thomson on Saturday night.
“I think our fight is going to be a great fight because we both come in ready and in shape. He was in one of last year’s best fights against Gilbert Melendez and I can match every bit of his conditioning and I think it’ll really be a tough, scrappy fight that people will enjoy watching. I want to thank all the fans and my sponsors Full Tilt, Last Round Nutrition, The Bean Scene which is the best coffee in Oregon. Also fans can catch me on my facebook which is www.facebook.com/patrickhealy or my website www.maxgxlmma.com.”
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