Sherdog’s Top 10: Scariest Finishers
No. 7
Few
fighters hit harder than Robbie Lawler. | Photo: Dave
Mandel/Sherdog.com
7. Robbie Lawler
If Anderson Silva represents the intangibles of terror, Lawler embodies the sheer visual effect of brutality. When Lawler hits people, he does so with absurd force, and they tend to fall down posthaste. He is one of the most gifted power strikers in MMA history, a marvel of athleticism and sneaky-good technique that has consistently put him in position to do terribly violent things to his opponents.
Lawler can destroy his opponents with a variety of different tools. Flying knees are a specialty: The Iowa native needed only 22 seconds to put Joey Villasenor down in 2006, and Adlan Amagov fell victim to another airborne knockout in Strikeforce in 2012. In his return to the UFC, Lawler has added kicks to his arsenal, repeatedly slamming his shin into Bobby Voelker’s head until the iron-jawed brawler finally fell.
Raw punching power, however, has always been at the heart of Lawler’s success. The term “knockout” seems like an understatement when applied to the finishes he produces, and they must be seen to be appreciated. After getting his legs pulverized by Melvin Manhoef for the better part of a round, he took the Dutchman’s head clean off with a right hook. Matt Lindland’s chin had never been outstanding, but Lawler put an end to any illusions about its suitability for further competition when another right hook dropped the former Olympian like a sack of potatoes. Note the gentle fashion in which Lawler places Lindland’s feet on the ground when it becomes clear that he is out cold. Jake Ellenberger crumpled, initially from a sharp jab and then a whole series of knees and punches.
Despite Johny Hendricks’ adamantium chin surviving a full 50 minutes of relentless assault, the new welterweight champion’s power has hardly disappeared, and he will probably finish more than a few fighters in terrifying fashion before he finally hangs up his gloves.
Number 6 » The former amateur boxer and elite kickboxer made a career for himself slamming his left shin into his opponents’ livers and jaws, playing off the threat of his razor-sharp straight left to move their hands and head around and get them leaning directly into the path of the fight-ending shot. Everything he threw had the power to finish the bout in devastating fashion.
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