Former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal returned from over a year away from action due to injury to take on Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu legend Roger Gracie. Lawal recently joined the American Kickboxing Academy, looking to add to his already strong wrestling base. Gracie entered the fight with an undefeated record, as his has recently switched his focus from grappling only.
Crowd firmly behind King Mo as the fight opened. Tentative start to the bout as both fighters looked to find their range. Gracie repeatedly looked for his jab, but ate a left hook from Lawal. A flying knee from Gracie connected, but Lawal seemed unfazed by the strike. The crowd showed their disapproval as the fighters failed to engage. Huge right hand from Lawal put Gracie out on the feet as he crashed to the mat. Lawal pounced, delivering one more shot, but the referee stepped in to prevent any futher assault.
The defeat is the first for Gracie in MMA. Lawal bounces back from his only career loss. The finishing blow connected behind the ear of the grappling legend. Lawal paid respect to the victims of Sept. 11 in his post fight interview. The victor credited his new team at AKA for his performance. Asked who’s next, Lawal said he’d love to face Feijao again, the man who handed him his only career loss.
Official result: Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal def. Roger Gracie via KO at 4:33 of Round 1.
Rob Tatum is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report MMA. You can also find Rob’s work at TheMMACorner.com. For anything related to MMA, you can follow Rob on Twitter @RobTatumMMA.