Matt Lindland
An Olympic wrestler who traded the mat for the cage and the campaign trail, forging an unorthodox career defined by relentless combat.
Born 1970 (age 56)·American mixed martial artist, litigator, Olympic wrestler and political candidate·Birthday: May 17·Generation X
Biography
Matt Lindland's life is a study in applied toughness. A junior college national champion wrestler, he fought his way onto the 2000 U.S. Olympic team, winning a silver medal in Greco-Roman wrestling in Sydney. With the Olympics over, he channeled that disciplined aggression into the raw, early world of mixed martial arts. Nicknamed 'The Law,' Lindland became a top-ranked middleweight, known for his grinding wrestling style and willingness to fight anyone, anywhere, competing for the UFC and across the globe. Never one to be pigeonholed, he simultaneously launched an apparel company, Dirty Boxer, and pursued acting with small roles in films. In 2008, he carried his fighter's mentality into politics, winning the Republican nomination for an Oregon House seat (though he lost the general election). Whether on the mat, in the cage, or on the stump, Lindland operated with the same straightforward, uncompromising intensity.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Matt was born in 1970, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Matt Was Born
The biggest hits of 1970
#1 Movie
Love Story
Best Picture
Patton
#1 TV Show
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Matt's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1970Born
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1975Started school
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1983Became a teenager
Internet adopts TCP/IP, creating the modern internet
Gas: $1.16/galHome: $57,700Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Every Breath You Take" — The PoliceBest Picture: Terms of Endearment
1986Could drive
Challenger disaster; Chernobyl nuclear meltdown
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $66,600Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"That's What Friends Are For" — Dionne & FriendsBest Picture: Platoon
1988Could vote
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $74,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Faith" — George MichaelBest Picture: Rain Man
1991Turned 21
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
2000Turned 30
Y2K passes without incident; contested Bush-Gore election
Gas: $1.51/galHome: $119,600Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Breathe" — Faith HillBest Picture: Gladiator
2010Turned 40
Deepwater Horizon oil spill; iPad launched
Gas: $2.79/galHome: $147,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Tik Tok" — KeshaBest Picture: The King's Speech
2020Turned 50
COVID-19 pandemic shuts down the world
Gas: $2.17/galHome: $248,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Blinding Lights" — The WeekndBest Picture: Nomadland
2026Age 56 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Won a silver medal in Greco-Roman wrestling at the 84 kg division in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.
- Competed in the UFC Middleweight division and challenged for the UFC Middleweight Championship at UFC 49.
- Founded the MMA apparel and equipment company Dirty Boxer.
Did You Know?
He served as a wrestling coach for the U.S. Army's World Class Athlete Program.
He had a small acting role in the 2014 film 'Foxcatcher,' which depicted the wrestling world.
He lost his Republican primary bid for the Oregon State Senate in 2010 by just a single vote.
“Control the position, control the fight. Everything else is just noise.”
