UFC Hall of Famer Robbie Lawler reveals blueprint to beat Team Khabib style fighters
UFC Hall of Famer Robbie Lawler once discussed chasing that inch vs. the Dagestani Team Khabib fight style and how to win.
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Robbie Lawler pitches in on path to victory against Team Khabib and Dagestani fight styles (Source: X/IMAGO)
Dagestani fighters and their hard scrambles add a certain flavor to their UFC/MMA mythos. Many such fighters have been hard to decipher and too late to tackle, going on to sum up undefeated stats. Most linked with ex-UFC lightweight legend Khabib Nurmagomedov, such fighters have been a longstay. UFC Hall of Famer Robbie Lawler laid into their mythos on a recent podcast appearance.
‘The Eagle’ himself retired with a neat 29-0 digit, Best Submission ESPY, and the longest 155-pound competition streak at the time. After him, many others in Team Khabib and their Dagestani training circuit burst into the MMA scene; up until late, his own cousin dominated with a big ‘0’ in his stats. Lawler did not train with Team Khabib, but he did train with atypical Russian sambo fighting class. Recently, ‘Ruthless’ laid out the blueprint for fighting them.
I have trained with a few [Dagestani fighters], ….but I’ve trained with guys similar to them where basically, what they do is they fight for that inch. So – the next thing you know, I’m freakin crucifixed on the ground… but not getting elbowed but that’s what could’ve happened. So then I realized, …’Oh, sh*t, you have to frickin stop them here…And once you stop them there, then you take that little inch’. You have to be willing to be very technical and stop everything.
Robbie Lawler via Jaxxon Podcast
Lawler mentioned that Dagestani fighters and their peculiar style entail a lot of technical fighting and grasping for the inch within a lean-in or a pre-clinch moment. Bagging that ‘inch’ makes all the difference; it’s what made Team Khabib’s namesake lightweight fighter so good. He touted high-fight IQ chaining of singles for that ‘inch’ of momentum. After which, he was indomitable from the sticky mount position.
Per Team Kill Cliff FC’s Lawler, if a fighter can substantiate something and get that inch themselves, it changes the game. This is not unlike Georgian Ilia Topuria’s assessment that Dagestanis need to be explosive on the lean in the first few frames. It’s not considerably just exclusive to Russian fighters or combat Sambo either.
Khamzat Chimaev is similarly explosive in the lean-in and quite the opening-round fighter. Such pure assessments have to show the level of acumen Lawler touts and why he deserves his HOF credentials.
UFC veteran Robbie Lawler had the ‘feels’ UFC Hall of Fame announcement was almost in the air
The UFC 313 PPV broadcast saw one of the most violent fighters get his due. Robbie Lawler would have his moment, enshrined among the greats, but as a two-time Hall of Famer! The former 170-pounder would join the HOF part of the 2025 class in the Modern Wing. ‘Ruthless’ already is in the Hall in the Fight Wing.
Lawler joins longtime producer Craig Piligian this season. Also joining the Fight Wing are previous inductees (UFC 312 PPV) Israel Adesanya vs. Kelvin Gastelum for the class of 2025. The induction ceremony will be conducted on June 26 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. This year’s IFW festivities will commence on June 26th with the return of UFC X and HOF in tow. The event concludes with the UFC 317 PPV card on June 28th.
UFC’s special HOF announcement and video package played in the arena after the first UFC 313 PPV main card fight. The fighter says in his gut, he knew the moment was coming.
I had a feel for it. I just did, …I didn’t tell anybody I had a feel for it. I let my wife know. I’m like, ‘Hey …’ And then when I was sitting where I was sitting, I was [thinking it]… But still, when it happens, you’re like, ‘Oh – this is actually happening.’
Robbie Lawler during UFC 313 PPV post-fight fighter interviews
Lawler touts his fame through his time at UFC, Strikeforce, Elite XC, IFL, and so much more. He has wins over Donald Cerrone, Matt Brown, Josh Koscheck, Melvin Manhoef, and others. His scrap with Nick Diaz was one of a kind.
Related: Dricus Du Plessis in shock of Merab Dvalishvili’s gas tank at UFC 311: “Needs to be studied”
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