Ruthless Aggression: An MMAmania.com interview exclusive with Robbie Lawler

There are a lot of adjectives that appropriately describe Robbie Lawler as a fighter. Cunning, brutal, callous, and ruthless are just a few.

UFC President Dana White chose the latter and donned him "Ruthless" Robbie Lawler back in 2002 when he was just a twenty-year-old kid fighting in the UFC purely on heart and sheer determination.

Since departing the UFC in 2004, Lawler has gone 8 - 1 including notable victories over Frank Trigg, Murilo Rua and Scott Smith, while accumulating two belts along the way: The ICON Sport middleweight championship and the EliteXC middleweight championship.

Lawler's competitive nature and fighting spirit continue to be driving forces in his career to this day.

The difference between then and now is that his skills as a mixed martial artist have evolved and he is a dangerous, well-rounded fighter who continues to be a handful for anyone who dares to step inside the cage against him.

Enter another former EliteXC champion in Jake Shields, who will be Lawler's next test at the appropriately titled Strikeforce: 'Lawler vs. Shields' event that will be held in St. Louis, Missouri on June 6.

Robbie took some time out of his busy schedule to discuss his teammate Matt Hughes, his long layoff, Jake Shields and why he's not thrilled about having to fight him at a catchweight.

Check it out.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): You just got back from Las Vegas where you were cornering your teammate Matt Hughes. What are your thoughts on how his fight with Matt Serra played out?

Robbie Lawler: It went pretty good. He won so that's always a good sign. He won two out of the three rounds and he got the victory.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): Did you guys go out and celebrate on the Vegas strip afterwards or did you have to get back?

Robbie Lawler: Not really. It was low key. We went out to a small bar and just kind of hung out and talked.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): Do you fully expect Hughes to sign another contract and continue to fight?

Robbie Lawler: I didn't know what to expect. Usually I don't listen to what he says during his interviews. After the fight I was kind of interested on what he was going to say. I was kind of just waiting like you guys were.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): I want to briefly go back in time to the demise of EliteXC. If Strikeforce had not came in and bought your contract, who would you likely be fighting for today? Which organization was at the top of your list?

Robbie Lawler: I was just kind of waiting it out. We were talking to everyone and keeping our options open. Basically, whoever was going to pay the most.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): When you step in the cage with Jake Shields it will be about ten months since your last fight. Does it feel like twenty? What has the wait been like for you mentally?

Robbie Lawler: It hasn't been that bad. I've had long layoffs before. I've just been training hard. The whole time I was off I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to fight anywhere else. I could fight in a week. I just didn't know so I kept myself in pretty good shape.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): Do you expect any rust or issues with cardio deep in the fight after this long of a layoff?

Robbie Lawler: No. I've been training hard and I should be ready to go.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): The HIT Squad gym you call home is less than ten miles away from where you'll take on Shields in downtown St. Louis. Does this give you any kind of advantage at all or is "home field" irrelevant in MMA?

Robbie Lawler: Yeah, I don't think home field really means anything in sports in general. I just think if you're the better athlete or you have the better team you're going to win and it doesn't matter where.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): Your opponent Jake Shields is known for having a world class ground game. Is the key to this fight your ability to keep it standing and play to your strength?

Robbie Lawler: That could be one key. I just need to be in good shape and I'm ready to go. I just need to be able to go three rounds and go hard the whole time.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): At the 182 pound catchweight, do you feel like you'll have the size and strength advantage? Do you anticipate being able to push out of positions and bully him around a little bit?

Robbie Lawler: No, because the catchweight is not really good for me. It's better for him. I'm coming down. He does not have to cut any weight. I have to cut more than I'm normally used to, but I don't think it really matters. I'm going to be ready to go and ready to fight.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): The catchweight was something that appeared to be agreed on after the fact. Is that something you'll try to agree upon up front next time if a catchweight is needed? What are your thoughts on how that transpired?

Robbie Lawler: Well the thing is they're like, "Hey you're going to fight Jake Shields" and I was like, "Okay we're fighting him." We did the press conference and everything.

Then my manager goes, "They want to do it at 182" and I was like, "Why didn't they say that in the beginning?"

Then he was like, "Do you really want to fight him on this? Is this something where you think you should make a big deal about it?" I go, "Hey, it's not a big deal if they don't think it's a big deal."

Now it's at 182 and we're all passed that and we're going to fight. Yeah, I wasn't too happy about the way it went down.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): Do you think the winner of this fight deserves a crack at the middleweight title if you can pull Cung Le off a movie set?

Robbie Lawler: I don't really care about any of that shit. I'm just going to be ready to fight. After that I'll probably take a couple days off and start training again. Maybe a week or two after that I'll decide what's going on and where I'm going.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): Are you going to try to fight again before the end of the year?

Robbie Lawler: Yeah I'm hoping to fight maybe two or three times before the end of the year. I had the long layoff and I want to make up for lost time.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): Who are the others on the Strikeforce payroll you would like a piece of? Is the chance to avenge your loss to Nick Diaz high on your list of things to do?

Robbie Lawler: No he's not on my list. I don't have a list. I got past that fight a long time ago. I lost and it happens and I've moved on.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): That's all I had for you Robbie. Anything you would like to say to your fans out there or any sponsors you want to thank?

Robbie Lawler: I want to thank Tapout and the HitSquad.com.

Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): Alright, thanks again. Best of luck to you in a few days.

Robbie Lawler: Yep, peace.