Fighting "Ruthless" pays off.
That's because Robbie Lawler has been awarded the middleweight title shot he's been asking for as he will take on Ronaldo Souza at the upcoming Jan. 29 Strikeforce event, according to MMAFighting.com.
Lawler went 2-1 in three fights in 2010, including two vicious knockouts that had Melvin Manhoef and Matt Lindland seeing tweety birds.
In fact, his knockout of the latter was one of the most brutal KO's of the year. Savage enough that there were immediate calls for "The Law" to retire while "Ruthless" was pushed straight into a shot at the 185-pound strap.
His opponent will be another Brazilian jiu-jitsu player albeit much younger.
Ronaldo Souza was given the opportunity to capture his title when Strikeforce was forced to scrap a proposed middleweight tournament to crown a new champion after Jake Shields skipped town for the greener pastures of the UFC.
After it was determined commission rules dictated a tournament could not take place, "Jacare's" fight with Tim Kennedy was turned into a five-rounder for the gold and the Brazilian took a unanimous decision back in August.
Now we'll see another classic striker vs grappler showdown early next year.
Strikeforce has yet to announce the event set to take place on Jan. 29. Along with this contest, other rumored bouts for the card are Jason Miller vs the aforementioned Kennedy and the return of Herschel Walker against an unnamed opponent, presumably Scott Carson.
Nick Diaz has also been rumored to defend his welterweight crown at the event.
Stay tuned to MMAMania.com for more on this still developing fight card.
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