Welcome to Midnight Mania!
The career of a Welterweight legend is officially coming to an end in 2023. During an announcement on Wednesday, UFC President Dana White revealed that former 170-pound champion and UFC Hall of Famer Robbie Lawler would be retiring at UFC 290, which is scheduled for July 8 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Lawler’s opponent will be Niko Price,
“I found Robbie Lawler when he was 19 years old,” White said (via MMA Junkie). “UFC 290 will be final fight of his amazing 22 year career.”
It shouldn’t be a huge surprise that Lawler is hanging up the gloves at 41 years of age. Since losing the title in July 2016, “Ruthless” has really struggled inside the cage. He’s lost five of his last six bouts, defeating Nick Diaz via strikes to earn his sole victory in that span. He has lost mostly to ranked contenders and did earn “Fight of the Night” honors opposite Bryan Barberena last time out, but it’s been clear that Lawler’s career was winding down.
As for Price, “The Hybrid” is struggling a bit himself. He’s won just once in his last five bouts, as well as dealt with a significant knee injury that kept him out of the cage for just over a year. Still, Price is a fan favorite, because he can always be counted on to fight hard to the final bell and chase the finish.
All in all, it’s a very reasonable final fight for a beloved former champion. There is, however, one minor bit of controversy, as it’s been revealed that Lawler’s retirement will take place on the undercard. Hopefully, there will be time on air for a speech, because “Ruthless” deserves to have a final moment in the cage in front of the largest audience possible.
Insomnia
I have to say, UFC 290 looks considerably better than UFC 288 and UFC 289 to my eyes.
Michael Chandler fights more like a young guy now that he’s old, and he still looks 30. I understand Nate’s confusion!
A pair of absolutely banger Featherweight match ups have been added to UFC London!
A tremendous prompt! Far from the absolute lowest, but I remember recently being incensed by Jake Matthews refusing to wrestle opposite Matthew Semelsberger and instead getting dropped repeatedly
Alex Pereira is back in the gym, flowing on the bag.
Petr Yan is just randomly punking people on Muay Thai street in Phuket — you have to laugh!
Is this real? There’s no way this is real. Right?
Slips, rips, and KO clips
Not a finish, but a lovely sequence.
Tejada kept it weird in more ways than one.
The left hook to the liver claims another victim.
Random Land
I have to assume these are fake weights …
Midnight Music: Classic rock, 1968
Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.
