The Film Room: Robbie Lawler

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Former Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight titleholder Robbie Lawler will step inside the Octagon for the 21st time when he takes on Colby Covington in the UFC on ESPN 5 headliner this Saturday at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The 37-year-old has been involved in some of the most brutal fights in UFC history and undoubtedly believes he has one last title run left in him.

Lawler provides the material for this installment of The Film Room.



“Ruthless Robbie” is known for his relentless striking and his incredible chin, but what never gets mentioned is how clever he is on the feet. Lawler is more than just a big left hand and a good chin; he is one of the smartest strikers in the division and uses his athletic gifts as his foundation. Most of his leading attacks are simple one-twos down the middle followed by left hooks, but it is the timing and angles that allow him to land it at will. As a southpaw, Lawler is proficient at taking inside and outside angles in the open guard to set up his left hand, and he proved against Johny Hendricks that his hands are just as effective against fellow southpaws. However, the major intangible in this fight is Covington’s grappling ability, which could limit what Lawler does on the feet. His plodding-forward style might vanish in fear of the takedown, but against Ben Askren, he did not seem to care about the wrestling deficit and went full force as always.



Early in his career, Lawler was recklessly aggressive, but he has added certain amount of intelligence to his approach as he has aged. As a younger fighter, he would often flail forward with wild hooks to the head; now, he is routinely taking angles to set up his left hand, all while keeping a slower but more constant pace. Against Rory MacDonald, Lawler routinely took steps inside and outside of his guard to set up the left hand. He almost never leads without taking an angle, and his ability to switch between the two allows him to keep the opponent guessing.



Staying true to his roots, Lawler’s genius comes to life when he is forcing exchanges in the pocket. Now that he has the experience and knowledge that comes with an 18-year career, he can push the pace and force exchanges in the pocket while staying defensively responsible and making reads on his opponent. In many exchanges, he takes most of the strikes on his forearms and shoulders while coming forward and landing his punches clean. Being able to stay calm in these moments is rare at any level of MMA, and it happens to be Lawler’s greatest strength.



Lawler moves his head and occasionally switches his stance in the pocket while taking the opponent’s strikes on the forearms and shoulders. Even during a ridiculous frenzy of punches from Rafael dos Anjos, Lawler took most of them on the arms and rolled with the others. The reading ability and defensive instincts required to do this during a chaotic exchange is something very few fighters have at their disposal. Lawler has built his career on it.



Lawler will not sit on the outside and counter from a distance, but he is effective when countering in the pocket. Early in his career, Lawler relied on his counter overhand left, but these days, he likes to counter with full-fledged combos in the pocket, not just single strikes. Since Lawler is so calm and collected in moments of madness, he is not afraid to blitz forward when the opponent’s strikes fall short. Since Covington figures to be shooting for takedowns, it would benefit Lawler to work in some counter uppercuts or intercepting knees down the middle.