Being plagued with injuries that keep you out of action for almost a year is no easy task for a mixed martial artist to face. For most fighters, the concern of “ring rust” comes into play and can play a crucial factor in the outcome of their first fight back. Strikeforce Middleweight prospect Eric Lawson (4-1 Strikeforce, 9-3 career) isn’t concerned one bit about the lengthy inactivity; he’s bringing all the energy from training for a year into the cage this Saturday when he fights Ron Keslar (0-2 Strikeforce, 5-3 career) at “Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Cyborg”.
Lawson stated on Inside Fights’ “MMA 24/7”, “I had a string of injuries that kept me from competing over the past year or so, even though I was training the whole time, but they would just pop up around competition time. I’ve pretty much just taken all of that energy and that sense of unfinished business and put it into a really, really hard training camp.”
The series of unfortunate injuries has not only kept Lawson from competing in Strikeforce, but it also prevented him from becoming a full-time MMA fighter. The Californian balances being a mixed martial artist with a full-time job as a real estate finance agent. Lawson never lets his time as a finance agent interrupt his MMA career.
“It’s definitely a busy schedule…” Lawson said. “The good thing about [the real estate] career is that I’m pretty much self-employed so that I can take time away from my day job and put it into fighting when I have something scheduled. Of course, when the fights are over and I have some free time I’ll go back to working a regular schedule.
The Californian has amassed an impressive career record of nine wins and only three losses while juggling two different jobs. If Lawson were to pursue becoming a full-time fighter and join one of California’s world-renowned gyms, the sky is the limit for him.
The injuries are well past Lawson now, and he’s looking into the crystal ball and predicting a very active 2011.
Lawson told us, “I’m hoping I can fight at least a minimum of three to four fights— maybe more. I’d like to stay as active as possible. For me, once I’m in fight shape, as long as I’m not injured, I’d love to fight every week and just keep going and going.”
Eric Lawson’s first challenge of 2011 will be this Saturday against Ron Keslar. Keslar is now 0-2 in Strikeforce, and is looking to redeem himself at Lawson’s expense. Despite Keslar’s less than stellar company record, Lawson isn’t underestimating his abilities one bit. As a wrestler with submission skills, Ron Keslar has the ability to grind his opponent out for a decision victory and to pick up a win by making his opponent submit. Lawson says he is prepared for Keslar and is “expecting a war”. He has been training for this moment for a year… Lawson is ready to prove that he has what it takes to stand across the best in the Strikeforce Middleweight Division.
“‘I’m ready for Saturday and it’s going to be an exciting, violent fight for everyone to enjoy.”
Inside Fights’ weekly show “MMA 24/7” broadcasts live every Wednesday at 5 PM EST at Inside Fights!
