Veteran NW-based MMA fighter Pat "Bam Bam" Healy will be fighting the undefeated Lyle "Fancy Pants" Beerbohm at 155 lbs on Fri Feb 18th in Austin TX in the main event of Strikeforce Challengers. NW Fightscene had a chance to talk with Healy a few days before the show and Healy spoke about his training camp with MMA Superstar BJ Penn, his thoughts on Beerbohm, and much more...

NW Fightscene: Pat you're fighting Lyle Beerbohm this coming Friday on Strikeforce Challengers 14. How are you feeling? 
Pat Healy: I'm feeling great. Spent this whole training camp out in Hawaii with BJ Penn and a slew of great fighters who came through, and training just went great. So I'm really ready for this one.

NWFS: Now what prompted the flyout to the islands?
Healy: I trained with BJ for his last fight with [Matt] Hughes, for about five weeks. And we just really clicked. We really get along. I get along really good with his trainers. I really, really like working with those guys, like Troy Mandaloniz & Justin McCully are just great trainers. And its a different look for me. I learn a lot when I'm out there. BJ is just a phenom and has a bunch of great guys around him who give me a lot of different looks than I get back home. 

NWFS: Your opponent Lyle Beerbohm is undefeated. He's a good opponent.  Talk about his strengths and what he brings to the cage.
Healy: I think Lyle always comes in shape. He always comes hard. He's really aggressive. But I think his biggest strength is his belief in himself. He's his biggest fan. He really thinks he's one of the best fighters in the world. He's undefeated. And when a guy believes so strongly in himself, that's always tough to overcome.

NWFS: How do you see the fight playing out? 
Healy: I see this fight playing out really good for me. I think I'm stronger at what he does... He's a wrester but I think I can control the takedowns. I can control the clinch. And we're both really aggressive. I doubt either of us is going to take a step back. And I think that is what'll make the difference for me is that I'll be the bigger guy and I'll be able to push him around a little bit more and outwrestle him. He's got a couple of good chokes. Slick, kind of unorthodox chokes. So I got to watch out for those. But once I stay out of those, I'll be able to dominate in the other areas.

NWFS: You're the main event in this show and you fought Josh Thomson last year in a fight that garnered a lot of attention. You're kind of becoming a household name again. What's that been like for you? 
Healy: I'm starting to build a little following. But I kind of keep to myself. I live in the mountains, in Eagle Creek Oregon. I don't really like the spotlight. That's not why I'm in MMA. It's not my goal to be famous or anything like that. But it does make things a little bit easier as far as getting better fights and getting more money and sponsorships. I guess I have to welcome it and try to embrace it a little bit. But I'd really rather be just fighting and out in the mountains with my dogs shooting birds.

NWFS: Do you have any pre-fight rituals or anything you do before your fights?
Healy: Leading up to the fight, I always read a lot. I don't know what it is. I try to read a lot in the off time but I don't ever seem to. But man, the couple weeks before I always read. I'm pretty introverted so I kind of draw back into myself. I spend a lot of time alone and just being with myself.

NWFS: Anyone you'd like to thank?
Healy: I definitely want to thank Epic Sports Entertainment and especially Danny Lagafuaina for going out there and helping me get more money with sponsorships and stuff. And Faction Mouthguards for making me a great mouthguard. And then all the boys out in Hawaii. They treat you like a king... They beat you up and then treat you great. Those guys are awesome and I love those guys.

NW Fightscene would like to thank Pat for taking the time to speak with us. He'll be taking on Lyle Beerbohm in the main event of the Strikeforce Challengers card taking place near Austin TX on Fri Feb 18th, 2011 and broadcast on Showtime. Learn more at Strikeforce.com and Sports.Sho.com.