Don’t expect to see ex-UFC welterweight champion Robbie Lawler return to competition for a long time.
When Robbie Lawler lost a unanimous decision to Rafael dos Anjos in the UFC on FOX 26 main event, he’d spent the second-half of the fight competing with an apparent left knee injury. As it turned out, Lawler tore his ACL and meniscus, which figures to keep him out of competition for a lengthy period of time.
“The guy’s leg was destroyed,” White said to Yahoo’s Kevin Iole. “Okay? Blew his ACL and his meniscus and every other thing that’s in your knee out in like the third round. Wobbled over to the fence, laid against it, and asked dos Anjos to come in so that they could just bang it out. Robbie Lawler went to the fifth round.”
MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani later confirmed the extent of both injuries, noting that Lawler will likely be out through at least the first-half of 2018.
Lawler saw his unforgettable reign as UFC welterweight champion end with a vicious knockout defeat vs. Tyron Woodley in July 2016. The 35-year-old sat out the rest of the year before making his return at UFC 214 last July, winning an entertaining unanimous decision over Donald Cerrone. Dos Anjos shut Lawler out on the scorecards, perhaps signaling the end of his time at the absolute top of the 170-pound division.