Mailbag: Which fights defined Robbie Lawler’s hall of fame MMA career?

With Robbie Lawler headed to the UFC Hall of Fame, what are the fights that best represent his specific brand of delightful barbarism? Did Alex Pereira get exposed at UFC 313, and will it rule out a move to heavyweight? Plus, what kind of interest will TKO’s boxing “league” generate once it finally debuts?

All that and more in this week’s mailbag. To ask a question of your own, hit up @BenFowlkesMMA or @benfowlkes.bsky.social.

@JedKMeshew: Since fighters get inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame for their fights as well, how many times over does Robbie Lawler deserve to be a Hall of Famer? And same for Justin Gaethje

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Here’s the thing people need to appreciate about Robert Glenn Lawler: He debuted at UFC 37, then had his last fight at UFC 290. He won both of them. That’s a career that spanned 253 numbered UFC fights, and in between he won titles in two other organizations.

What I’m saying is, it’s not just the high points that make him an all-time great — although the high points were super high and very memorable. It’s also the incredible longevity, the ability to recreate himself again and again across at least three different eras of the sport, and also the growth and maturity he attained without ever losing that signature ferocity.

As for my personal favorite Robbie Lawler fights, in and out of the UFC? I was in the building when he defended his UFC welterweight title in that absolute bloodbath against Rory MacDonald in 2015 and I’ll never forget that one. Also his 2010 fight with Melvin Manhoef in Strikeforce, where Lawler got his legs kicked to shreds before coming back with the one-punch KO and then limping off in celebration.

His knockout of Frank Trigg in Hawaii’s ICON Sport promotion in 2007 was one of the most brutally violent finishes I’ve ever seen (seriously, go watch the end of that fight).

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And while not necessarily a competitive fight, I remember when he first came back to the UFC and got Josh Koscheck as an opponent. It was the exact type of fight Lawler always used to lose, going up against a suffocating wrestler. This time he stuffed a takedown and immediately hammered away for the knockout, as if signaling that this UFC run would be different.

But I’ll also never forget the first time I saw him fight in person. It was in 2007, when he fought Eduardo Pamplona in the IFL. I was ringside for that one, typing out live blogs for the IFL website. Pamplona was a tough dude, but the punches Lawler was hitting him with, I could almost feel the shockwave from the impact a few feet away. Just the sound of them, it became instantly clear that Lawler’s punching power was something completely different.

And when I tried to ask him about it afterward, it was like it was no big deal to him. Just another night of work. Lawler was truly special, not only because of what he could do but because of what he willed himself to become. We shall not look upon his like again.

Oh, and as for Justin Gaethje? Now that I’ve gone on and on already, it might be easier to list the fights of his that weren’t incredible.

@SLefkaditis: Was Poatan as good as we thought (before the fight with Ankalaev) or everyone overestimated him because of some favorable match ups in LHW? Greetings from Greece!

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It’s about time we get some greetings from Greece in this mailbag. Let’s not start second-guessing Alex Pereira’s whole career just because he lost one competitive fight. No one else has run through two different UFC divisions like he has, or put the light heavyweight title up for grabs as frequently and eagerly as he has. Which, if we’re looking for reasons as to why he looked a little hesitant against Magomed Ankalaev on Saturday, is at least worth considering.

This was Pereira’s fourth title fight in less than a year. If he looked a little off, like he was struggling to pull the trigger at times, maybe it’s at least partially because anyone who gets in there so often is bound to have a bad night eventually.

I’d still be interested to see what Pereira could do in a rematch. It’s not as if Ankalaev just totally outclassed him. And even if this does signal the end of Pereira’s UFC title reign(s) for good, let’s remind ourselves that the man didn’t make his UFC debut until his mid-thirties and still won belts in two divisions in the span of just two years. Even if he really is starting to fall off now, as he nears his 38th birthday, it doesn’t mean he wasn’t great in his time.

@NeedXtoseePosts: Will what happened to Poatan put a stop the talk of a HW title reign. He still could beat many of the top 10 but Tommy Gas Hands and Bones seems close to impossible now. So more importantly is a 3 weigh champion even possible (pouring one out for HenryC who maybe could’ve)

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I do think someone will eventually become a three-division UFC champ (I wouldn’t rule Ilia Topuria out just yet), but for Pereira it would have to come in weight classes that span an 80-pound range, from middleweight to the 265-pound heavyweight limit, which is insane.

I doubt that this version of Pereira would beat either Jon Jones or Tom Aspinall. That doesn’t mean I wouldn’t still watch him try, though. If he wants to move up and challenge the winner — let’s be very clear that Jones vs. Aspinall is the only fight to make for the UFC heavyweight title right now, end of story — I’d cancel plans to stay home and watch. Even if I think it might be a bad night for “Poatan” in the end.

@JonaFreedman: How does TKO make people want to watch a boxing league comprised of up and coming boxers? Will UFC fans just watch because they are told to by Dana? Will boxing fans care about low level Boxing?

The test case for how many people will watch something solely because Dana White tells them to is Power Slap. It’s purely a marketing job, with White leveraging UFC assets and celebrity friendships in an attempt to make it seem cool. The result is that it’s more popular than all other sports combined!

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That’s, you know, if you just take White’s word for it. If you look at the numbers over on YouTube, you’ll see that its “massive YouTube Live debut” currently has about one-tenth the views of this video highlighting the “most ridiculous moments” in women’s snooker.

I think there will be a lot of initial curiosity about TKO’s boxing foray just because it’s so new. People will want to see what this looks like and how it might shake up the boxing world. But if it’s all just up-and-comers who most fans aren’t particularly invested in — basically the Dana White Contender Series, but for boxing — that interest will evaporate really quickly.

What this needs is some big names and big fights right out of the gate. The good news is, that should absolutely be possible with the Saudi wealth fund behind it. TKO isn’t investing any of its own money into this. It’s purely acting as the promoter and collecting a fee, so maybe some of the company’s miserly tendencies won’t hold this effort back.

@ItKanoli31520: why do grown men get so worked up about Taylor Swift? Luke Thomas, for examples, all but froths at the mouth when talking about how much he hates her music. Why would an adult even have an opinion? It’s not for us, it’s like having a strong opinion about Peppa Pig. Why?

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I see your point, but can I be real with you here for a second? I really like a lot of Taylor Swift’s music. My oldest daughter is a big fan, so I hear a lot of it. “Folklore” is a hell of an album. “Evermore” has some bangers on it as well. I mean, “Closure” alone is a great song. Her work with Bon Iver and The National and Big Red Machine is always good.

I guess my only real criticism is that she can’t dance. But come on, does she need to? She writes and sings, plays the guitar and the piano. Bob Dylan didn’t dance. Axl Rose only had that one move. Mick Jagger dances like a rooster being zapped by an electric fence (and I say this as a big Stones fan). I say we let Taylor just stand there and do her thing.

@indorfin.bsky.social: In terms of who the UFC machine likes, have there ever been less liked champs than Belal, Merab, and Magomed?

You’re absolutely right about Belal Muhammad, who had to publicly campaign just to get the UFC to let him have his flag on the website the way every other fighter does. With Ankalaev, I think it’s too soon to tell. He does seem to be the least interesting and charismatic of the Dagestani standouts, but we’ll see.

As for Merab Dvalishvili, there I cannot agree. He’s built up a good following and gets a lot of love for fans, even when he’s running up on fans in the crowd or posting cringe on socials. He has an infectious enthusiasm, and I think the UFC gets that. Or maybe I just hope so.

@EyeofMihawk: Which of the Fighting Nerds wins a title first and which loses first in the UFC? My money is on Caio, then Jean Silva for gold

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Honestly I think Caio Borralho has a real chance to be the first to win a UFC title. He’s already ranked at no. 6 in the middleweight division, and that’s a weight class where fresh blood can more easily rise quickly with a couple key wins. Jean Silva has looked really good, but he’s not yet ranked and is one of the most talent-rich divisions the UFC has.

@Psychoward586: Hypothetically, how many novice league hockey MVPs should one be allowed to win before being politely, yet firmly, escorted to the intermediate division?

OK look, the first time I won the novice league MVP it was because I was the leading goal-scorer, even though I think some errors by the scorekeepers contributed to that by giving me credit for several of my teammates’ goals. (No offense to the scorekeepers. I also would not care too much about properly recording every player’s goals in the lowest possible league, especially if I was on as many edibles as they often seem to be.)

The second time I won? I think it was just because someone had to win and they already knew my name from last year. Either way, I went home with an MVP water bottle that gets good use in my garage gym.

The real point is, I am 45 years old and I didn’t know how to ice skate until like six years ago. The intermediate league has a bunch of sandbaggers who played high school hockey, but more importantly the games are super late on Tuesday nights, and I’m not doing that. So give me a break and let me enjoy my trophies.