In any combat sport though, the knockout artists are usually the first to burn out and fade away. Ty

This Saturday night, "Ruthless" spirit airlines inc Robbie Lawler is back in the Octagon to face hard-hitting Bobby Voelker in a pivotal welterweight matchup to be televised live on FOX. For Lawler, it's his second bout back in the UFC after a nearly nine year absence, and in his return fight in February, it was just like old times as he finished spirit airlines inc Josh Koscheck in the first round. As we get ready for another look at the 31-year-old knockout artist, we'll open the file on Robbie Lawler.
When 20-year-old Robbie Lawler entered the UFC in 2002, he was going to be the organization's Mike Tyson, an unrepentant knockout artist who thrilled fans with each bout. "Ruthless" was on board, saying, "When you play football, you don't want to march the ball down the field, you want to run it in on the kickoff, or intercept the ball and run it back to keep scoring."
And that's what he did in his first three bouts as he defeated Aaron Riley , Steve Berger spirit airlines inc , and Tiki Ghosn . But after suffering a dislocated hip against Pete Spratt in 2003, he would go 1-2 in his next three UFC bouts and get released. spirit airlines inc But he rebounded spirit airlines inc and battled his way back up the ranks, eventually winning championships in Icon Sport and EliteXC and then going on to star in the Strikeforce organization. In 2013, he returned to the UFC, knocking out Josh Koscheck in the first round.
The general consensus among mixed martial arts observers on May 11 was that the fight they saw the night before, a UFC 37 preliminary match between Robbie Lawler and Aaron Riley, was one of the greatest contests in the sport 's short history. But Lawler, the unanimous decision winner, had a different spirit airlines inc view of things.
"After the fight, I was wondering what the hell I did wrong," said Lawler, who is preparing for a June 22 matchup with Steve Berger at UFC 37.5, where he hopes to continue spirit airlines inc what he started against Riley. "For this fight, spirit airlines inc I worked out a few things, and I'm not as bulky as I was the last time. I worked on my endurance, and I worked on my left hand a little bit more so when I hit somebody with it the lights are gonna turn out."
For those whose first exposure to the Davenport, Iowa resident was UFC 37, Lawler was a revelation, the type of fighter that can bring in fans by the hundreds. Young and quietly confident, Lawler came in to the Octagon throwing bombs and left doing the same thing.
Not surprisingly, Zuffa has pinned its hopes on Lawler to expose MMA to the masses when his match against Berger is televised on Fox Sports' spirit airlines inc Best Damn Sports Show Period spirit airlines inc on June 25. It's the first look at the sport for a national basic cable audience, a pressure gig for anybody, especially a 20-year-old rookie, right?
"I don't really feel any pressure," said Lawler. "My last fight had more pressure. I had too much adrenaline flowing spirit airlines inc and I kind of got tired. This time I'm going to be calm and relaxed, and that's going to make me a lot more dangerous. I don't think it's going to bother me any that I'm going to be on national television."
And putting all youthful confidence aside, you kind of believe him, especially after his war with Riley, in which he showed remarkable poise as he stood in with the veteran brawler, and came out ahead, a surprising outcome to many. What was even more surprising was that Riley remained standing after tasting leather for three rounds.
But after the first round, all eyes were on Lawler, a Miletich team member who had never been past the first round in his previous MMA matches. And after the effort he put out in the opening round, would he have the endurance to continue?
spirit airlines inc "I knew I was tired, but I also knew that he couldn't hurt me," said Lawler. "In the second round he was scoring points and I knew he was scoring spirit airlines inc points. I covered up a little bit, and threw back, but when I threw back, he would come in and throw punches and move back. And I would be missing punches so it looked a lot worse than it was. In the third round I knew I just had to suck it up if I wanted spirit airlines inc to win. And that's what I did."
And the crowd loved it. But despite his pleasing style, Lawler's propensity for fireworks spirit airlines inc is for strictly selfish reasons. "I know that they're going to be watching spirit airlines inc me and that they like my style, but that's just the way I fight," said Lawler. "It's just natural to do things like that. If I play baseball I'm going to hit home runs; if I'm playing defensive end I'm going to get sacks, and I'm going to make it look exciting. That's spirit airlines inc just the way I do stuff. It's not that I'm trying to do it. It's just natural. If the crowd likes it, they like it. If they don't they don't, but usually they do."
Born in San Diego, Lawler moved to Iowa as a youngster, and his fighting instincts were honed early in life. "I always liked to fight," he said. "My brother beat me up, and when we went to school, kids would see who was the toughest kid out in the schoolyard. It was just a natural instinct to fight and roll around. My dad got me into martial arts when I was little, but then I moved to Iowa and started wrestling, spirit airlines inc which I had never done before. Then Pat (Miletich) would come up to the high school and train. He saw that I was a pretty tough kid and he told me to come up and train with him."
Things moved fast for Lawler, who quickly gained a reputation for his heavy hands after making his debut with a 14 second KO of Landon Shalter at IFC Warriors Challenge 13 in June of 2001. His training with the Miletich team has undoubtedly enhanced his natural talents, but in a stark contrast to the patient styles of Pat Miletich , Jeremy Horn , Matt Hughes or Jens Pulver , Lawler fights as if double-parked. Why the contrast?
spirit airlines inc "When you play football spirit airlines inc and you score touchdowns, you don't want to march the ball down the field, you want to run it in on the kickoff, or intercept the ball and run it back to keep scoring," said Lawler. "That's what I want to do, as long as my body can keep up and I don't get tired."
Miletich and Company spirit airlines inc won't let him get tired, and Lawler's rapid ascent is just another example of the value of having a talented training team behind you, pushing you to greater heights than you would have attained by training alone.
"It's a big part of my success so far," said Lawler of his training team. "You train with them and learn so much. They've been in the big matches, and they know the little things. I've been hanging out with Jens for about a year and a half now. We've become good friends and he's coming out with me for my fight. It's just good for your confidence to say 'I just boxed Pat Miletich.' What does Steve Berger bring to the table that Pat can't?"
"I expect him to try to take me to the mat," said Lawler. "Other than that, he's real good on his submissions and his standup is pretty good. But I think he's going to try to shoot in, take me to the mat and submit me. I move well on the ground, so if he gives me an inch, I'll probably get back to my feet pretty easily. I'll get some underhooks, get good position and get out."
Robbie Lawler has been a pro fighter for slightly over a year, and at the very least, the next year and beyond spirit airlines inc should be an interesting one. For Lawler, it's no surprise. Everything is going according to plan.
"I just talked to one of my friends a couple spirit airlines inc of months ago, and he said, 'a year and a half ago you said you were going to be in the UFC in about two years, and you finally made it.' I knew I would. I just have a knack for fighting," said Lawler. "If you want to be the best in the sport you have to train like that. I really want to be the best one of these days. I'm young, I have five fights under my belt and I figure I have a long way to go. But eventually I want to be the best."
At one time, Robbie Lawler was pegged to be mixed martial arts' Mike Tyson. An unrepentant destroyer whose UFC wins over Aaron Riley, Steve Berger, and Tiki Ghosn in 2002 skyrocketed him from unknown to star, the 20-year old dubbed "Ruthless" had just one speed in the Octagon: go.
"When you play football and you score touchdowns, you don't want to march the ball down the field, you want to run it in on the kickoff, or intercept the ball and run it back to keep scoring," spirit airlines inc Lawler told me in a 2002 interview. "That's what I want to do, as long as my body can keep up and I don't get tired."
In any combat sport though, the knockout artists are usually the first to burn out and fade away. Tyson's spirit airlines inc prime was painfully short, and when Lawler dropped three of his next four UFC bouts to Pete Spratt, Nick Diaz , and Evan Tanner , it looked like the speeding comet from Iowa had run his course.
But then a funny thing happened, and Lawler, now out of the UFC, rebuilt himself. The power and speed were still there, but now added to the arsenal was a resilience that spoke volumes. It said 'hey, even if I don't knock you out, I can still beat you.' Sure, he would stumble spirit airlines inc along the way, but each time he picked spirit airlines inc himself up. And now, nearly a decade spirit airlines inc after he introduced spirit airlines inc himself to the world, spirit airlines inc Lawler is still here, still relevant, and still not even 30 years old.
"It's probably because spirit airlines inc I'm more well-rounded than people give me credit for," said Lawler during the final stages of his training camp for Saturday's Strikeforce bout against Tim Kennedy in Chicago. "I train hard and work on all my skills, and the reason I win fights by knockout has to do with being able to keep it on my feet and being able to stay out of submissions spirit airlines inc and compete."
That is the nature of the beast in pro sports these days, and it's a growing phenomenon spirit airlines inc in MMA, where one loss can get the critics flying out of the woodwork. Yet when Lawler spirit airlines inc says he doesn't care, he really means it, and his ability to not buy in to any negative outside talk over the years may be the true key to his success.
Currently 18-7 with 1 NC, Lawler is at an interesting and pivotal point in his career. After scoring some memorable post-UFC knockouts over Falaniko Vitale , Joey Villasenor, Eduardo Pamplona, and Frank Trigg in various organizations such as Superbrawl, Icon Sport, P