"Rampage can talk all that noise, but I'm gonna take his spot. I'm gonna put his bitch ass on the B-Team...His punk ass wants to say I won't stand up and box him. I will box him with the little gloves on. I'll box him. The thing is, I can take him down. He can't stop my takedowns, you know what I'm saying? Trust me. But I can make it interesting and embarrass him at his own game and stand with him. I can hit him with a wide left hook or an overhand right and what's he gonna do? He has no jab; I don't have nothing to worry about. He punches slow, he is heavy-footed, and the worst thing is after the fight, he sounds like William Joppy," stated former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion King Mo Lawal, who had some choice words for rival and former UFC light heavyweight champion Rampage Jackson. You don't want to miss what he had to say. Check it out!
PC: You picked up a big win not too long ago against Roger Gracie. Now that you had time to look back at the fight, assess your performance a little bit.
KM: It's like this, I had to do what I had to do to get that victory. I knew he was going to try to pull guard on me. I knew if I was throwing heat, he would be reluctant to try and clinch with me. So that's what I was doing; I was throwing jabs to his body, chest or neck, and then threw a big right hand or big left hook to get him going backwards. I knew if I touched him, I would get him out of there and that's what happened. I give myself a B.
PC: You dealt with his reach pretty good. You gave up a lot of height and reach and I don't remember anything landing, especially his jab.
KM: Yeah, I wasn't worried about it because even if I was getting hit, he had no power to hurt me, so my goal was to walk him down and slip whatever he threw at me, and that's what I did.
PC: A lot of people saw you on HBO supporting Bryan Vera. What was it like to finally meet him and be around him, and what did you think of his performance?
KM: Man, it was great being around him, man. That's my boy. That's my dawg and he got a group of good people around him, so he will go far. I'm going to be at all of his fights to be honest with you. The way he fought, I think he fought looking for the knockout just a little too much. In the 6th or 7th round, he went with the game plan that his coaches put in place for him. If he would have fought like that the first 5 or 6 rounds, then he would have been able to finish the fight the way he started it. He would have been strong. I would have liked to see him land some straight punches and touch him here and there to the body and here and there to the head for the first 6 rounds, then the last 4 rounds he could have done the same thing until he banged him out.
PC: You know, like I know, sometimes the guy that wins the first fight walks away learning less from the win than the guy who actually lost the fight. I think Bryan got caught in that trap.
KM: The funny thing is it's like that in wrestling. I would wrestle somebody and pin their ass; bam! So then, when I wrestle them again, I'd be like, "I pinned their ass the last time; I'm going to pin them again." But then the pin never came, and I would beat them, but I would be like, "Damn," because I was looking for the pin. So I decided to just go out there and smash cats and just get the win. I was out there trying to force a pin and you can't force a pin, just like you can't force a knockout.
PC: You really enjoy watching Sergio Martinez fight. He was the main event on the card out in AC. Barker presented some problems, but like a champion, Sergio found a way to get him out of there. What did you think of his performance?
KM: Man, Sergio stayed patient, kept throwing punches, and did his thing, man. I think that people saying he didn't look that good, and this and that...but at the end of the day, he got the victory and he stopped him. Barker went out there to fight and landed some shots, but after a while, he became a defensive fighter. I think Floyd will give Sergio Martinez a good fight. Sergio's still the man though.
PC: Rampage did a post-fight interview after his loss to Jon Jones and said he would love to fight King Ho, which he refers to you as. He wants to fight in Japan in February, and if I understand correctly, your Strikeforce contract is up in February. Is that the fight you want and can it be made given the circumstances?
KM: I don't know, we'll see. I'll say this, Rampage can talk all that noise, but I'm gonna take his spot. I'm gonna put his bitch ass on the B-Team!
PC: He has a few nicknames for you, Queen Mo and King Ho, and I know that doesn't bother you, but given you guys' history, it makes for a great fight. I know a lot of grudge matches don't turn out exciting because guys are afraid to make that mistake and give their enemy any edge, but I think this fight has excitement written all over it.
KM: Oh, yeah, yeah! His punk ass wants to say I won't stand up and box him. I will box him with the little gloves on. I'll box him. The thing is, I can take him down. He can't stop my takedowns, you know what I'm saying? Trust me. But I can make it interesting and embarrass him at his own game and stand with him. I can hit him with a wide left hook or an overhand right and what's he gonna do? He has no jab; I don't have nothing to worry about. He punches slow, he is heavy-footed, and the worst thing is after the fight, he sounds like William Joppy. It's a damn shame to dick ride the person that beat him; ol' ho ass!
PC: He has hinted at making a move to boxing. I spoke to a very respected striking coach, and I won't disclose his name, but he said Rampage doesn't have what it takes to go into boxing because boxing is more than just good head movement. Do you think he can make a run in the sweet science?
KM: Yeah, good success at being a punching bag. He got head movement and slow feet (laughing). The thing is, Rampage was athletic, but when he started saying that shit, "I'm not an athlete, I'm a fighter," that's when he lost it all. When he started trying to be a fighter, he lost it. We all grew up fighting, so we know how to do that, but you gotta be an athlete too. He just shows up and tries to throw big punches, but he is not an athlete anymore.
PC: Now he says things like, "I'm tired up fighting people that show up with a game plan. I want to fight people that want to throw them thangs." He feels even if he gets knocked out in boxing, at least he knows he was in a standup fight.
KM: Man, please! They would jab him, then adjust; they will circle, they will hit him in the body, and then jab, jab, jab, jab, jab, jab and jab. And then when he gets tired, they will get him out of there. They game plan in every sport. Every sport, even track and field, they game plan. Man, that dude an idiot, man. He stupid and the fans that believe him are as dumb as he is.
PC: Are you back in the gym or you still taking it easy right now?
KM: I'm back in the gym, dawg. I'm training with Cung Le and Cain Velasquez, and then when I'm done helping them, it's off to see my other coaches, you know what I'm saying?
PC: Definitely. When Jeff Mayweather finishes up with Celestino Caballero, you will be back in Vegas working with him. Are you ready for "The Doom"?
KM: Ah man, "The Doom" ain't landing this time, man. I'm shutting it down. For real!
PC: You and my partner, Ben Thompson, have a much anticipated debate coming up. We gonna have to PPV this thing if y'all keep delaying it. What's the hold up?
KM: Man, that dude trying to tell me I need to take Olympic-style drug testing. He trying to play me, dawg. He trying to ask for Olympic-style drug testing. I want a 14-day cut off (laughing). I want a 14-day cutoff, dawg.
PC: We gonna make it happen. Man, you got a lot of supporters, just like you have a lot of haters. Give your fans something in closing my man.
KM: Hey mayne, to all of my fans and everybody trying to do something positive, y'all keep on doing what y'all doing and if you see a hater, slap his ass!
[ Follow Percy Crawford on Twitter @MrLouis1ana ]