bleacherreport.com/articles/716475-ufc-tj-obrien-im-definitely-not-one-dimensional
Do you remember your first triangle choke?
I actually do. I had seen somebody do it and it was probably within the first couple classes and my instructor showed us the triangle—I had only seen people do it on TV. This class had a lot of beginners—it wasn’t the best class. A wrestler tried stacking me up and I hit him with a triangle—not really knowing how to do it, just from seeing it on TV—and everyone said, “Wow! What was that? Where did that come from?” It fits me really well; people don’t realize how strong I am and between that and my long legs, the triangle choke makes people go to sleep pretty easily.
Is it just a coincidence that you have so many wins by the triangle or is it something that you’re always looking for?
It’s something I always work. Being here in Iowa—there are a lot of wrestlers around here—and that’s what they do; they put you on your back. I had to figure out a way to beat that, so I started working on this triangle choke. I’ve made my triangle choke really offensive; I really force it on people.
What’s the secret behind applying a nice, strong triangle choke?
I would probably say the angle. I’ve locked up triangles from every direction; sometimes people have said, “How the hell did he do that?” I’ve done triangles that I haven’t seen anyone else do. I’d have to say the key is the angle and how far across you can get the arm—if you can get that arm across then it’s over.
[Laughs] Is that your favourite way to end a fight?
[Laughs] No—I want to get the knockout! I’d like to score some knockouts—I haven’t been able to get any as a pro. Obviously, I’ve won enough fights by triangle; I know, at one time, I was tied for the second most triangles. That’s not a record I plan on chasing any time soon [laughs].
What would a knockout mean to you this weekend?
It would be the high-light of my career—probably the high-light of my life—to be able to show everyone that I’m not a one-dimensional guy. I want to get this knockout and make sure everyone knows that they have to worry about my hands, too.
Do you think people view you as one-dimensional?
Not so much around here—because a lot of people know me—but if you look at my record, you’ll say that I can’t do anything but the triangle. I knew that if I was someone else, I would probably say the same thing if they had the kind of record that I have. That’s not the case at all, though; I’ll choke you out from anywhere and I’ll probably knock you out from anywhere. I’m definitely not one-dimensional.