By Derek Bolender
Special to CBSSports.com
Granite City, Ill., is a hard-working, blue-collar industrial town that has been hit hard over the years by deindustrialization and weak economic conditions, both foreign and domestic.
In 2006, author Dave Gilmartin choose various cities and towns across the United States to feature in his book Absolutely Worst Places to Live in America. Granite City was prominently featured starting on page 113.
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| Lawler wasn't pleased with how the catch weight issue was approached. (Getty Images) |
Suite D at 400 A Street is headquarters for the H.I.T. (Hughes Intensive Training) Squad, one of the premier mixed martial arts gyms in the country.
It's co-owned by former UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes and former EliteXC middleweight champion Robbie Lawler.
Walk around the gym a while, and you will quickly come to the conclusion that the management, training staff, and its employees have all adopted the same hard-working, gritty values embodied by the surrounding town.
This is exactly the spot where Lawler (18–4, one no-contest) is putting the finishing touches on his training camp in preparation for his much anticipated Strikeforce fight Saturday against former EliteXC welterweight champion Jake Shields (22–4–1).
Lawler typically fights at the 185-pound limit and Shields at 170, so this fight will take place at a catch weight of 182.
That itself has been a source of minor controversy after it was revealed that the weight was agreed upon after the fact. It is still a bit of a sore subject for Lawler, who recently stated in an interview, "I wasn't too happy about the way it went down."
"The catch weight is not really good for me," Lawler said. "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."
With the number of days until fight night creeping closer, he has chosen to simply ignore it and get down to business.
"We're all past that, and we're going to fight," said Lawler.
For this bout, a classic striker vs. grappler matchup, the game plan for Lawler is likely to keep the fight off the mat using his strength advantage and takedown defense, slowly dissect Shields with the hands using combinations and use kicks to keep him honest and at a distance.
Tipping his hand before his fights is something Lawler doesn't want to do. He'd rather keep his intentions a secret.
As he put it, "I just need to be able to go three rounds and go hard the whole time."
Nevertheless, the underlying message is simple; play to your strengths, dictate the fight and do it in a merciless manner.
It was precisely that aggressive and unforgiving fighting spirit that prompted UFC president Dana White to anoint him "Ruthless" Robbie Lawler early in his MMA career. The nickname has stuck.
Overall, those ruthless tendencies have led to 15 of his 18 wins (83 percent) coming by way of knockout, including vicious beatings of Murilo "Ninja" Rua and Frank Trigg.
It has been a long time since Lawler saw the inside of a cage because of the dissolution of EliteXC and subsequent purchase of his contract, along with most of the other remaining ProElite assets, by Scott Coker and Strikeforce.
Lawler last fought on July 26, 2008, when he scored a second-round TKO victory over Scott "Hands of Steel" Smith. It has been a big layoff not only for Lawler, but for Shields as well.
Surprisingly, the time away does not seem to bother Lawler one bit.
"It hasn't been that bad. I've had long layoffs before. 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."
The Scottrade Center in downtown St. Louis will play host Saturday to what will most certainly be a bit of home field advantage for Lawler. The stadium is almost a stone's throw away from Granite City.
If Lawler stood on the roof of the H.I.T. Squad building, he could look across the Mississippi River and see downtown St. Louis. It is a mere seven miles for him to travel for the toughest fight of his career.
Lawler downplayed the significance of his virtual home-field advantage.
"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 [it takes place]," he said.
Will Lawler be able to impose his will on his home turf against the accomplished jiu-jitsu ace Shields? Will a win propel him to a potential title shot with Strikeforce middleweight champion Cung Le? The answers will be delivered in due time.
