Scott "Hands of Steel" Smith takes on former Strikeforce Middleweight Champion, Cung Le, in the Main Event of the Strikeforce "Evolution" event at the HP Pavilion in San Jose this coming Saturday, December 19th. NW Fightscene's Spaniard spoke with Scott on Friday, December 11th inside his Ultimate Training Center gym in Roseville, California about the upcoming fight and a whole lot more...

NW Fightscene: How did you get into Mixed Martial Arts?
Scott Smith: Actually, my background is wrestling. I wrestled junior high, and high school. But I had a son when I was a senior in high school. And so that kept me from going away to college. So I went to a local junior college. Ended up wrestling, took it real serious. A couple of guys on the wresting team did Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, that's when the UFC just got started. They never wrestled before. They joined the junior college team just to improve their jiu-jitsu. They won half their matches, so it really opened my eyes to jiu-jitsu. Started training with them and then one thing just led to the next and the instructor is like "Hey, if you have any hands you'd be pretty good at MMA. You wanna try it?" So I tried it and before you know it I was like 7-0, just fighting one or two fights a year. I started in '02. 

NWFS: What camp was it?
Smith: It was just Sac BJJ. A guy I wrested with in college, his cousin ran the jiu-jitsu program. Casio Warner Jiu-jitsu. He was in Brazil at the time coming over like twice a year. Started fighting Gladiator Challenge and then had an opening to fight in the WEC Light Heavyweight Tournament. I'd actually quit fighting for about a year because the money wasn't really good. Fought in that heavyweight tournament. Actually, James Irvin and my manager talked me into it. Big underdog in that, ended up winning that. Defended my belt against Justin Levens. That got me into the UFC, got me on the reality show. I've been fighting full-time now for about three years.

NWFS: Now are you doing all right with sponsors to fight full-time?
Smith: Yeah, Strikeforce is actually awesome with sponsorships. They're not restricting sponsors like the UFC.

NWFS: You've fought for all the big organizations. What's it like fighting for Strikeforce?
Smith: Its awesome. They treat me absolutely great. I'm making more on sponsorship for this fight than the UFC was paying me to fight so that tells you how good Strikeforce is doing for me.

NWFS: The fight is 8 days away, how are you feeling as it moves closer? 
Smith: I feel great. I got a couple more days of hard sparring. I like pushing all the way to the week of the fight. And then the last few days just keeping my weight down, relax and having fun. 

NWFS: When did you know you were to fight Cung Le?
Smith: I found out the day of the Fedor fight which was like six weeks to know it was Cung Le. I was training for a fight a few weeks before but I didn't know against who. My camp has been three days a week. I commute to San Francisco which is a two hour drive. Do my Muay Thai there [at Fairtex Fitness]. And then come back and do cardio here. And then three days a week I go to my boxing coach down the street, do straight boxing, come here and do my wrestling and jiu-jitsu, and then I do my core conditioning. And if my weight is heavy, I just go back and cut weight at night. Its all geared around my kids. I have my kids half the time. Like when I go to San Francisco, I drop my kids off at school. I drive two hours and train for an hour and a half, then drive back and pick my kids up at the school. Same thing here. I drop them off and come to Roseville. Its a forty five minute drive just to get here. Train for three and a half hours, go back pick my kids up. I get my training done early and then I have the evenings to relax which is kind of tough because I fight late at night, especially the main event. I'll be fighting at like 10 o'clock at night. I go to bed at like 9:30. That's another thing I adjust the week of the fight. I start staying up late and doing my training late. I'm used to being up at 6 in the morning and going to bed at 9:30. That something I have to switch around the week of the fight. 

NWFS: When you found out about Cung Le what were some of the things you changed specifically in your training camp to get ready?
Smith: You look at his strengths and how to counter them. He's got nasty kicks, his standup is ridiculous. But then again I'm more of the guys, I got to focus on what I do best. I do focus on what he does best but I just got to make sure I overwhelm him and he doesn't overwhelm me. Especially a guy being that technical. You can't let him pick you apart. 

NWFS: In it being that technical, its been said brawler boxer, boxer brawler. Do you think that applies here? You're mostly known as a brawler and he's a striker...
Smith: Right, I can't sit back and counterstrike with him. I got to impose my will on him. So yeah, that's exactly what it is.

NWFS: With all the talk about the striking, do you think at all it might end up a grappling battle?
Smith: I think both of us are smart enough fighters if we get rocked in a bad position, we're not just going to sit there and take the KO. I don't think either one of us is looking to go to the ground. I think its probably in our playbooks as the very last page.

NWFS: In the past you've had some trouble with grapplers. Are you worried about his ground game at all?
Smith: No. I know he has good collegiate wrestling. And I know he's really squirmy on you. He's just an athletic guy. I know he'd be really tough to hold down so it would be a waste of energy taking a guy like that down. I see him popping right back up if you do. So I'm not concerned with his [ground] offense but his defense is probably pretty tough.

NWFS: You've fought on a lot of big shows. This is probably the biggest main event to date. Has that played in your head at all before the fight? 
Smith: No, it seems like my last five fights have all been my toughest fight. You go from Robbie Lawler twice to Terry Martin where I was the main event. That was a big fight for me coming off a loss with Robbie Lawler. Then going to Benji Radach and then going to Nate Diaz, and now Cung Le. They're just big fight after big fight so its not a big deal. I just got to make sure I go in there and put on a good show and have some fun. That's when I do my best. 

NWFS: Now, the Benji Radach fight I have to say I was there personally and I'm saying one of my favorite fights of the year. How do you feel about that fight?
Smith: Yeah, that fight I knew it was going to be a war. I actually injured my knee about 8 weeks before that fight. I almost pulled out of the fight. I was kind of strapped for cash actually. I needed to take the fight. So I did not grapple one time for that fight. I couldn't with my knee. So my wrestling and jiu-jitsu mentally was just terrible. And I think I was just so flat footed in that fight, just waiting for him to try and take me down because I would have been screwed if he took me down. He did take me down once and landed like 12 out of 12 shots so I just wasn't there mentally for that fight. Third round turned into a do or die situation and I just went for it. I was holding back to much earlier in the fight. But yeah those are the kind of fights I like to brawl. 

NWFS: Now that kind of seemingly is almost the same layout for this fight. Cung Le's a precision striker almost kind of like Benji. Do you think this is going to be one of those hard wars?
Smith: Yeah I see it being a hard war. If there's any weakness in his standup, I'd say its his punching power. He's more known for his kicks. So I have to make it more of boxing match than a kickboxing match.

NWFS: Do you think his layoff at all will play a factor, the fact he hasn't fought in a long time?
Smith: I think he might have a little ring rust mentally. It might mess with him a little bit. I don't think its going to affect his performance once we have one exchange. I think the ring rust is out the door.

NWFS: You're a real respectful dude, he's a real respectful dude. Is it hard getting in there and fighting a guy you like?
Smith: Honestly I prefer to get in there and fight I guy I like and have respect for. I go out there trying to put on the fight of the night every night, and I would prefer to do that with a respectful, even a friend type. Like Benji Radach. Everybody's talking about how great of fight that was. I'm glad they're talking about that fight and he's a good guy. I'd rather not have that be some jerk getting all the recognition for it. Kind of like when I fought Pete Sell in the UFC, we were friends before that. Me and him had the fight of the night, we both got a big bonus for that. I'd rather my friend get the bonus than some guy I didn't like.

NWFS: I asked some friends on Myspace what they would ask and one question was, both of you guys are kind of snazzy dressers when it comes to the post show and that stuff. Who do you think is a better dresser, better looker. You or Cung?
Smith: I'll give that to him. My manager made me buy the damn suit that I got. I'm a shorts, flip-flops, and Affliction shirt guy. I'll give it to Cung.

NWFS: You're a fighter, obviously you're very busy and you got kids and all that. What do you do in your spare time?
Smith: Man, I just like hanging out with the family and barbecuing. That's what I do. I like to cook. I like having friends and family over. I got a big family of six siblings, like 10 nieces and nephews. I'm always getting together with my brothers and sisters and close friends and just hanging out at the house. I don't go out too much.

NWFS: Who are the guys in your training camp?

Smith: Hal Morgan, aka Curious George, he's one of my grappling partners. Billy Miles, he's been a really good wrestling partner as well. Rudy Baptista. That's my core conditioning coach. He's kind of been like my camp coordinator too. He's the one bringing all the grapplers in and making me do my conditioning. Stuff like that. James Irvin is kind of here for the same reason. Camp coordinator.

NWFS: Anybody you'd like to thank? 
Smith: Yeah, to all the fans. They're the reason I'm getting these big time fights because they want to see me fight. I do really truly appreciate that. My sponsors are what get me by, fight to fight. Metro PCS. Affliction always has treated me good. Rockstar Energy. Full Tilt Poker. Those guys are really taking care of me.

NW Fightscene would like to thank Scott for taking the time to speak with us.

Visit the Ultimate Training Center in Roseville, California at 354 N Sunrise Ave, or online at www.UltimateTrainingCtr.com

Spaniard & Scott Smith