UFC champions Khamzat Chimaev and Islam Makhachev have been near-invincible forces inside the octagon, but Muhammad “King Mo” Lawal believes he knows the best way to take them on by taking a page from someone who defeated boxing legend Wladimir Klitschko.
Chimaev (15-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) was labeled a future UFC champion after his debut, and made that a reality in the middleweight division in just nine fights. After the only loss of his career, which came in his second UFC appearance, Makhachev (28-1 MMA, 17-1 UFC) has been an unstoppable force since, capturing the lightweight and welterweight titles.
Advertisement
Both champions have a smothering wrestling game that has been incredibly problematic for their opponents.
“I feel like between the two, Islam is the better wrestler,” Lawal told MMA Junkie Radio. “I like his techniques. They both can wrestle. I think when it comes down to those two, you have to go out and fight they ass.”
Hesitancy is something noticeable from their opponents. They know that one wrong move means they’ll get put on their back before they even realize how it happened – and more often than not, their only way back to a standing position is at the end of the round, or after they tapped or were ground and pounded out.
Lawal referenced the first man to defeat Klitschko, a former heavyweight boxing champion who retired with a 64-5 record, including 53 knockouts. Ross Puritty took on Klitschko in 1998, when he was an undefeated 24-0. Puritty was 24-13-1 at the time, but got the job done by essentially throwing caution to the wind. “King Mo” believes in order to beat guys like Chimaev and Makhachev, their opponents must do the same.
Advertisement
“Ross ‘The Boss’ Puritty, from El Paso, Texas, fought Klitschko, and he said in order to beat Klitschko, he had to go out there and fight Klitschko as if it was a Toughman contest,” Lawal said. “You can’t out-technique those guys, but you can out-dog ’em in some ways.
“Make them fight at a fast pace. You might get cut up, you might get taken down, you might get elbowed, you might get bruised, kicked – but if you get up and keep on fighting, and make them fight at a faster pace than they’re used to handling, you might be able to do something.”
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: ‘King Mo’: Klitschko loss may be key to beating Chimaev, Makhachev
