"They just want to see slugfests. If you want to see a slugfest, go to a bar. If you put two skilled fighters in there, you can't get them to have a slugfest. You can get two mid-level fighters. If you want to see crisp standup, watch boxing. They hate to see someone with good standup come to MMA, like James Toney, but when someone like Rashad uses his wrestling, he is considered boring. Mixed martial arts fans don't know what they want to see. Go watch some Emanuel Augustus highlights and you will see some good standup; or watch K-1. Those are the same people that say boxing is dead or boxing is boring...That is stupid, dog. They think it's easy to be a fighter, so they sit back and criticize and all that, but they want to do what we do. They don't know what it's like to be a fighter...Like I said, I give him his props. He's a lot stronger than I thought he was. James is going to surprise a lot of people I think," stated Strikeforce light heavyweight champion King Mo Lawal as he talked about his work with boxing legend James Toney, his future plans and much more. Check it out!
PC: Rampage-Rashad went pretty much the way you felt it would go, right?
KM: Yeah mayne. You can call me Black Kellerman (laughing).
PC: You felt, going in, Rashad's speed would be too much for Rampage.
KM: Yeah, I knew that. Once you take a 15-month layoff...he was dealing with the weight and Rampage's style is plodding anyway. Rampage could have been at his best and he wouldn't have beat Rashad. I think Rashad is too quick for him, too smart for him and too versatile.
PC: You didn't think Rampage has looked fast for a long time, correct?
KM: Naw. He's looked slow to me for a long time. He's looked slow to me ever since he fought Randleman. Randleman forces you to be quick. Other than that, he was just strong and had willpower. I give him that. Rampage is a tough dude, man. He's tough and rugged, but Rashad outsmarted him.
PC: He's about to have to promote this movie. Do you think he should get right back in the cage? Because layoffs don't seem to do well with him.
KM: If I was Rampage...think about it. He has nothing to prove in the fight game, dog. He is a respected fighter and he's a Hall of Famer. He's fought the best and beat the best and even if he was to act right now, I would have him as a top fighter of all time. He really doesn't have to prove anything. I think if he's not really into this fighting thing, he should just act. He will do good in movies. He will be like Terry Crews. Terry Crews was a dude out of jail on the movie Friday, but he's like a comedian in White Chicks. I think that's just how Rampage is going to be.
PC: Did you see the things out of Rashad that you had seen all camp?
KM: I saw about 60%. He fought a good fight, but if it was a Rashad that was hitting on all cylinders, the fight wouldn't have went all 3 rounds. He's gonna beat Shogun and get the title back. I think Rashad is too good of an athlete. He can move and potshot him and when Shogun gets overaggressive, Rashad can take him down and control him. Rashad has good Jiu Jitsu. All of the people out there that say Rashad's Jiu Jitsu is not good, they need to go slap themselves. Rashad has really good Jiu Jitsu. I have seen him roll with Werdum; I have seen him roll with Mayhem and Dean Lister. The dude got good Jiu Jitsu, dog.
PC: You always like to address the haters on Twitter and recently, they put you and Rashad in the "lay-and-pray" category.
KM: That's the UFC Frat Boy fans. They just want to see slugfests. If you want to see a slugfest, go to a bar. If you put two skilled fighters in there, you can't get them to have a slugfest. You can get two mid-level fighters. If you want to see crisp standup, watch boxing. They hate to see someone with good standup come to MMA, like James Toney, but when someone like Rashad uses his wrestling, he is considered boring. Mixed martial arts fans don't know what they want to see. Go watch some Emanuel Augustus highlights and you will see some good standup; or watch K-1. Those are the same people that say boxing is dead or boxing is boring. They are idiots; they don't know what they want. I don't know what to tell them. All of the fans that are hating better hate now because after a while, MMA stars are going to be like football players and basketball players. They won't have access to us to be talking to us and communicating with us. The people that are hating and talk to Rashad and me like that with disrespect, they gonna regret it when they try to approach Rashad for an autograph and his bodyguard push them out of the way or when they approach Forrest Griffin and his bodyguards push them out of the way. A lot of fighters reply on Twitter and Facebook and stuff and the only thing these damn fans want to do is disrespect them. That is stupid dog. They think it's easy to be a fighter, so they sit back and criticize and all that, but they want to do what we do. They don't know what it's like to be a fighter.
PC: Any word on what's next for you?
KM: I think it's going to be down in H-Town boy. Down in H-Town, we ain't scared of no...I think it's going to be in H-Town on August 21st.
PC: Any opponent names yet?
KM: I don't know, mayne. I don't care who it is, but somebody is getting pieced up in H-Town. I aint playin'! It ain't Dallas, but its close enough and I ain't playing. I had the chance to work out with James Toney over the weekend. I'm trying to get my hands right, so it's all good. I'm working some stuff with him, but that's about it.
PC: I heard Toney had some tricks up his sleeve. How did it go?
KM: He's stronger than I thought, but I don't want to talk about it too much. He surprised me though.
PC: I heard some rumors of a standing guillotine or something.
KM: Ask him mayne. Like I said, I give him his props. He's a lot stronger than I thought he was. James is going to surprise a lot of people I think.
PC: Okay, back to your stuff. Is the thought of you fighting at heavyweight still an option?
KM: Yeah dog. I want to fight wherever dog. It doesn't matter about weight; weight classes don't matter to me. I fight for fun and the money. I want to be known as a great fighter that had a lot of fun doing it. I want to be the Emanuel Augustus of MMA, with a winning record. That's all I'm trying to do. That's my favorite fighter of all time dog. Before I die, that's my one wish, to meet Emanuel Augustus. People can call it showboating or whatever, like they try to say about Rashad, but fighting is all about rhythm. You have to find your rhythm.
PC: I'm sure we will be speaking often in the next couple of weeks. Give me some closing thoughts for this one.
KM: Hey mayne, people call me and Rashad lay-and-pray, but we lay motherfuckers out and have their families praying for their safety. That's all we do! GDP, Team Thirsty for life.
[ Follow Percy Crawford on Twitter @MrLouis1ana ]