King Mo opens up w/ Inside Fight Sports

The career of a professional fighter consists of countless ups and downs, but rarely does a fighter experience the type of start to a year that AKA’s King Mo Lawal has.

Through all the trials and tribulations that early-2012 has brought Lawal, there has been one constant. That constant is his relationship with his teammates, and family, at American Kickboxing Academy.

For those that are unaware, Lawal was recently suspended by the NSAC for taking a banned substance for six months. Mo then took to Twitter and blasted the commission and NSAC Chairperson Pat Lundvall for being racist. That, subsequently, led to Lawal being released of his Strikeforce contract.

All this goes on while Lawal still recovers from a staph infection that almost cost him his life. In an exclusive interview with Inside Fight Sports two days after he was released from his contract, Lawal was reflective of all that was going on and was optimistic about his future.

Lawal admitted to his mistakes and how he took them as learning experiences, but was still visibly upset by the outcome of it all. When he spoke of his future, it was clear that he was unsure of what was next for his MMA career. However, Lawal did know that whatever he was going through his family at AKA would stand right beside him.

One of his closest teammates, fellow NCAA All-American wrestler Daniel Cormier, is also one of his staunchest supporters. Cormier and Lawal share a unique relationship. Both are former NCAA wrestling champions and Lawal’s first collegiate match was against Cormier. They trained together for the USA wrestling team and are now teammates at AKA. The two have built a strong bond and brotherhood that both share openly.

With the support of Cormier and everyone around him, and with his staph infection gone, King Mo is ready to put this past several months behind and start anew. He is more than ready to begin his rehab and make his way back into the cage…ANY cage as long as the money is there. The self-described “moneyweight” fighter, Lawal is open to fighting any opponent in any promotion at any weight.

Whether it is Fedor Emelianenko at heavyweight, Rampage Jackson at light heavyweight, in the UFC, in Strikeforce or even a debut in WWE, King Mo wants to fight because that is what Mo does best. 

Follow me on Twitter @NiteshDutt.