Robbie Lawler hasn't competed since losing his UFC Welterweight Title in a knockout loss to Tyron Woodley at UFC 201 and if Bellator MMA veteran King Mo has his way, it will be a while before Lawler returns to competition.
King Mo, who has cornered Lawler for many of his UFC fights, spoke to The MMA Hour recently about his reasoning behind Lawler needing a break from the octagon.
"It's like this, personally, me, I think that Robbie shouldn't fight until December or January…Take time off, because these past two years, man, at the gym, Robbie's been going to the max. Take some time to recharge, because Cerrone is a good fighter, it's a great fight for the fans -- why rush it? Cerrone ain't going nowhere. Cerrone is always in shape, always ready. So once Robbie recharges, if Cerrone wants to fight Robbie, then they can fight” said King Mo.
"Robbie, he's always in shape. It's just that, why rush it," Lawal said. "The past two years, man, his schedule and his fights -- man, take some time for your family, take some time for yourself. Recharge. After his last three fights, the following Monday he's back in the gym, lifting weights or doing something. He really hasn't stepped away from the gym. He has to be forced out by coach Kami (Barzini), like, ‘hey, go home. Go do something. Go fish, go mow your lawn, go do something. Go swimming.' They have to push him out of there because he always wants to be in there."
Lawler was set to fight Donald Cerrone at UFC 205, but pulled out of the fight shortly after it was announced, something that his one-time opponent spoke about.
"He came over and told me face-to-face, said, ‘I wanted to let you know man-to-man that this fight's not happening,’…I was like, what are you talking about? He's like, ‘yeah, just not going to do it.' I said this is Madison Square Garden. If I was to step aside, a little piece of fan died in me. Like, damn, that's a fight that I would love to watch. So it sucked, but he just said he's got some sh*t going on and wanted to let his head heal up a little more from the knockout he just had. So hey, I can't make him fight. He's still a friend of mine...He's one of the good guys, man, so [it hasn't changed my opinion of him] at all. Something must be off. Robbie is not a guy that just doesn't show up to fights, he's one of the last of a dying breed, so something must really be an issue” said Cerrone to the media last month.
Lawler and Mo currently don't have fights scheduled.
