Robbie Lawler has been around MMA long enough to know that anybody can defeat anybody on any given night.
Lawler fell victim to that at UFC 201 Saturday night, as Tyron Woodley handed him just his second career knockout loss in the first round. “Ruthless” dropped the UFC welterweight title in defeat, falling for the first time since a 2014 decision defeat to Johny Hendricks.
“It is what it is,” Lawler said. “My hand went down, he threw a punch over the top and he caught me.
“I expected that kind of (speed and power). I was sitting back, not moving and he took advantage.”
Lawler appeared to be the one to stop the run of UFC champions falling. Instead, he became the seventh titleholder to drop the belt since the calendar turned to 2016.