A torn ACL forced Robbie Lawler out of action for the entirety of 2018, but “Ruthless” is back in action and ready to welcome former One Championship and Bellator MMA welterweight champion Ben Askren to the Octagon. Expect Lawler to do everything in his power to deal Askren the first loss of his career at UFC 235.
The top welterweights are scheduled to slug it out at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on March 2. Let these numbers show you why Lawler is still one of the most dangerous welterweights around.
10: Years old when he started training karate after moving with his father to Bettendorf, Iowa. Lawler later attended Bettendorf High School, where he exceled in wrestling. After turning 16, he started training mixed martial arts under Pat Miletich.
19: years old when he made his professional debut on April 7, 2001. At Extreme Challenge 39, Lawler knocked out John Reed.
4: Straight wins before getting signed by the Ultimate Fighting Championship. All of those victories came by KO or TKO in the first round.
3: Full rounds against Aaron Riley in his UFC debut. After racking up four wins by stoppage, Lawler felt the higher level of competition inside the Octagon when Riley pushed him to the final bell. Nevertheless, he won the match by unanimous decision.
97: Significant strikes in his first three fights in the UFC, all of which he won. After his unanimous decision win over Riley, Lawler stopped Steve Berger and Tiki Ghosn.
6: Defeats in the UFC. Lawler has seen major ups and downs in his career. Inside the Octagon, he has suffered setbacks to Pete Spratt, Nick Diaz, Evan Tanner, Johny Hendricks, Tyron Woodley and Rafael dos Anjos.
46: Percent striking accuracy. In his 19-fight UFC career, Lawler has attempted 2,147 significant strikes and landed 984 of them.
266: Combined significant strikes against Hendrick’s 279 on the two times they fought. They first met at UFC 171, where Lawler lost by unanimous decision. Lawler made it even at UFC 181 after an even more competitive fight for the welterweight championship
2: Successful title defenses. These were against Rory MacDonald at UFC 189 and Carlos Condit at UFC 195. He would lose the belt at UFC 201 after getting knocked out by Woodley.
8: Fights in Strikeforce, with a record of 3-5. Lawler last fought for the promotion’s middleweight title opposite Ronaldo Souza at Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Cyborg, which he lost by rear-naked choke. Despite not having a stellar stint, he was re-signed by the UFC.
5: Post-fight bonuses in the UFC. He received Fight of the Night honors four times and Knockout of the Night once.
3: Consecutive Fight of the Year awards from Sherdog. These were for his landmark bouts with Hendricks at UFC 171, MacDonald at UFC 189 and Condit at UFC 195.