Whenever former Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight titleholder Robbie Lawler decides to ride off into the sunset, he figures to do so in a blaze of glory—win or lose. The 37-year-old Hard Knocks 365 representative will toe the line against Colby Covington in the UFC on ESPN 5 main event this Saturday at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. Lawler finds himself on a two-fight losing streak and has not competed since his controversial submission defeat to former Bellator MMA champion Ben Askren a little less than five months ago. “Ruthless Robbie” remains one of the sport’s preeminent heavy hitters, having delivered 20 of his 28 career victories by knockout or technical knockout. As Lawler makes final preparations for his five-round confrontation with Covington, here are five things you should know about him.
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Lawler
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1. He stays close to home.
While his storied career has taken him through 11 promotions, 18-plus years and more than 40 fights, Lawler has fought outside of the United States only once. He lost a unanimous decision to Rafael dos Anjos in the UFC on Fox 26 main event on Dec. 16, 2017 in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
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2. Impressive numbers have piled up.
According to FightMetric, Lawler ranks second among active UFC welterweights in significant strikes landed (1,007), third in knockdowns landed (nine) and sixth in total strikes landed (1,250).
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3. Age was just a number when he first threw his hat in the ring.
Spawned by the star-studded Miletich Fighting Systems camp that included former UFC champions Matt Hughes, Tim Sylvia and Jens Pulver, Lawler made his professional mixed martial arts debut at an Extreme Challenge event on April 7, 2001, a little more than two weeks after his 19th birthday. He stopped John Reed with punches just 2:14 into their bout in what was the first of 12 first-round finishes he has authored.
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4. His firepower can yield spectacular results.
He has three sub-minute finishes to his credit. Lawler stopped Landon Showalter in 14 seconds at an International Fighting Championship event in 2001, Joey Villasenor in 22 seconds under the Pride Fighting Championships banner in 2006 and Matt Lindland in 50 seconds inside Strikeforce in 2010.
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5. He belongs to a select group.
Lawler is one of 10 men who have laid claim to the undisputed Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight crown. The aforementioned Hughes, Kamaru Usman, Tyron Woodley, Johny Hendricks, Pat Miletich, Carlos Newton, B.J. Penn, Georges St. Pierre and Matt Serra are the others.
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