Robbie Lawler formally joins the UFC Corridor of Fame in July with one of the vital storied resumes within the historical past of the game stuffed with brutal knockouts, championship wins and all-time nice fights.
Again in 2014, Lawler competed in a No. 1 contender’s matchup in opposition to Matt Brown in a five-round major occasion on FOX with the winner shifting on to battle welterweight champion Johny Hendricks. Whereas it was a back-and-forth battle, Lawler ultimately got here out on high with unanimous determination win however regardless of the outcome not going his approach, Brown truly considers that his favourite struggle for his whole profession.
“He was undoubtedly my favourite struggle that I had,” Brown stated about Lawler on The Fighter vs. The Author. “I believe the Erick Silva struggle is the one which most individuals speak about as my most enjoyable struggle however for me, Robbie Lawler was my favourite struggle. Not solely as a result of it’s Robbie Lawler and also you get to go in there and have a fantastic battle with him, however I discovered extra from that struggle than I’ve from some other struggle in my life.
“We did a media tour the place we did like two or three days the place we’d eat lunch collectively and do all these totally different interviews sitting subsequent to one another and he was simply the best man. Simply relaxed and cozy. After the struggle, we have been cool. We talked, I’ve seen him a few occasions and we chat about issues. Only a great individual.”
It’s not usually {that a} fighter factors to a loss over a win as a favourite second however Brown heaped reward on Lawler after spending 25 minutes within the cage collectively.
He might not have gotten his hand raised that night time however Brown is aware of he walked away a greater fighter and that’s largely because of what Lawler taught him that night time.
“One of the vital clever, strategic fighters on the market that once more, I’ve talked about this earlier than, you don’t consider that once you consider Robbie Lawler,” Brown stated. “Going into that struggle, I believed he’s simply going to brawl, he’s going to be surprising however he truly outsmarted me in loads of methods and I didn’t anticipate that.
“You stated it good, he’s a really nicely deserved Corridor of Famer. He’s been on this sport since 2004. I began coaching in 2004 and he was already in there. Only a nice individual and a fantastic fighter, props to him.”
One other facet to the struggle that Brown singled out was what separated Lawler from so lots of his previous opponents that he truly slotted the previous UFC welterweight champion right into a class reserved for only a few in MMA.
“One of many massive issues I discovered in that struggle was what a warrior is,” Brown defined. “We’re all fighters. We will struggle for issues however a warrior stays strategic and stays clever via the battle and continues to strategize whereas beneath stress, whereas taking photographs, whereas even being rocked.
“I discovered the distinction between what a fighter is and a warrior is that night time. Robbie is a real warrior in each sense of the phrase. You possibly can’t give sufficient props to Robbie Lawler. He’s been a pioneer of this sport and been on the high of this sport for so long as I can keep in mind.”
For all that Brown achieved in his profession together with the report for essentially the most knockouts in UFC welterweight historical past (13) and sitting tied for second in that very same class for your entire UFC roster, the retired veteran nonetheless places Lawler in a special class for his lengthy listing of accolades.
From debuting again in 2001 and combating throughout 2023 whereas placing collectively a profession that actually does make him considered one of one, Brown couldn’t think about a greater candidate to get acknowledged for the UFC Corridor of Fame.
“Folks name me a legend on a regular basis and I’m like ‘that’s bullshit.’ Robbie Lawler is a f*cking legend,” Brown stated. “We’ve all received to like him. By no means an enormous trash talker. Stayed true to himself the entire time. He’s a type of guys that you simply sort of neglect that he’s there till he’s there and also you’re like oh yeah, f*cking Robbie. Only a savage.
“I’m certain he’s impressed hundreds of athletes developing for a few years. He impressed me in the beginning. He was considered one of my favorites in the beginning. It was an honor to share the cage with him and far love and respect to Robbie. Hope one of the best for him sooner or later.”
