Lawler retains title in knockdown, drag-out battle with Condit

Robbie Lawler, left, held up the hands of Carlos Condit after their MMA match in Las Vegas.

WHAT is it about two men beating each other bloody that others see poetry and beauty. Living up to its advance publicity, Robbie Lawler kept his welterweight title crown by beating Carlos Condit in a split decision yesterday (Jan. 2, 2016) in UFC 195 held in Las Vegas.

For the second time in his one-year reign as the welterweight champion in the UFC, the Filipino/American mixed martial arts fighter was part of the "fight of the year." 

Last year, Lawler's defense of his crown vs. Rory MacDonald was judged to be one of the best fights of all time, certainly a lock for Fight of the Year.

RELATED: Filipino American to defend his MMA title

Two days into 2016 and he could very well have been in this year's Fight of the Year.

He needed all five rounds to finally beat his challenger, a game and aggressive Condit. Condit gave Lawler all that he could, delivering more strikes and even winning the favor of two of the three judges. But Lawler's connected more power punches that seemed to hurt Condit. The third judge gave Lawler the nod, depriving Condit of an upset.

The match inspired Bleacher Report's Jeremy Botter to write: 

Every so often, when we are very lucky and when the gods and goddesses who created fighting decide we all need a little bit of light in our lives, they send us something that warms our hardened hearts and reminds us why we fell in love with the mixing of martial arts in the first place.

In 2015, those moments came along more than we probably deserved. They came in the form of ... Rory MacDonald vs. Robbie Lawler, the fight that changed two men permanently over the course of 25 minutes in Las Vegas. And for having witnessed it, we were all changed, some for the better and some for the worse. 

Those gods and goddesses, despite working overtime last year, decided to kick off the year of our Lord 2016 by sending us another gift. This time, it was in the form of Lawler, the incredibly regenerated man, stepping back in the Octagon with Carlos Condit.

Read more about the UFC 195 match between Lawler and Condit. 

After the fight, Lawler praised his opponent and said, "There were no losers tonight ... let's do it again!"

TGIF FEATURE: Filipino/American to defend his mixed-martial arts crown

Welterweight champ Robbie Lawler.

IS THIS the fight when Robbie Lawler gives up his welterweight crown? The 170 lb. Filipino/American mixed martial artist will meet challenger Carlos Condit in a Jan. 2 pay-per-view match in Las Vegas.

The highly anticipated matchup will headline the UFC 195 event (10 p.m. EST). Originally scheduled for November, the fight was postponed because of an injury Lawler suffered while training.

“I’ve been around a while,” said the 33-year old Lawler, who started his MMA career at age 20. “But it’s what I do and what I love to do. I always believed I would be a UFC champion. And I believe I will be successful in this defense as I was in my last.”

When the San Diego-born Lawler defended his title six months ago against Rory McDonald, the match was described as one of the best MMA fights in history and easily the Fight of the Year for 2015.

Lawler and Condit are both accomplished fighters and known for their striking power. Expect them to be standing toe-to-toe throwing blows from every direction. Most experts say the fighters are evenly matched and the fight too close to call. They also expect that the fight will end in a knock-out.

If it gets into a grappling match, Lawler will have a slight edge for his wrestling skills but Condit may have an edge in submission moves.

When Lawler beat John Hendricks to win his title in December 2014, which was held in Manila, he became the first Filipino/American to win a UFC crown.

At 5 feet, 11 inches, he'll be a few inches shorter than Condit and his reach will be an inch shorter but that doesn't deter the champ. 

Condit and Lawler have a healthy respect for each other and in pre-fight interviews avoided any trash talking about their opponent.

“I don’t ever really rank guys, but obviously Carlos is way up there,” he said of where Condit fits amongst the top strikers he’s faced in his career. “Every striker is different and has their little tweaks. Carlos is a kickboxer and he’s got a little different style than most, but he’s high up there and I definitely have to be focused. He brings everything to the table when it comes to strikes, so I have to be sharp.”

“He’s probably the most dangerous guy that I’ve ever faced,” Condit said of Lawler, heady praise from a man that has shared the Octagon with a Who’s Who of the 170-pound ranks over the last decade. “He’s super-skilled, but he’s also got the power and he’s got experience and he’s a smart fighter. I’m going to have to be on my A-game.”

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