King Mo Lawal The New light-heavyweight champion

Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal def. Gegard Mousasi via unanimous decision (49-45, 49-45, 49-45) – to become new Strikeforce light-heavyweight champion.

CHAMP GEGARD MOUSASI VS. MUHAMMED “KING MO” LAWAL

Round 1 –
Mousasi misses with a head kick before Lawal charges in with a left-right that grazes his opponent. Lawal swings wildly and misses before resetting. Lawal grabs a single leg but eats a quick barrage of punches before getting the takedown. Mousasi nearly locks in a triangle, but Lawal moves into full guard. Mousasi works a butterfly guard, just misses on an upkick, and then covers up from punches. Lawal dives in with a shot that just misses and moves into side control. Lawal stands again as Mousasi again tries upkicks. Lawal tries again but can’t get past Mousasi’s upkicks and returns to full guard. Mousasi is using butterfly guard, which allows Lawal to stand again. Lawal mixed in the occasional punch but can’t do any major damage. Lawal stands again, ducks under an upkick, and finally starts to land some punches. Lawal stands over him and is waves in, and Mousasi gets to his feet after the next scramble. Lawal shoots, eats punches when he can’t get it, and takes part of a head kick to the cheek. Lawal, though, gets another takedown. Lawal catches a breather before hopping to his feet and allowing Mousasi to do the same. Mousasi misses with another head kick before the round ends. MMAjunkie.com scores it 10-9 for Lawal.

Round 2 – Lawal telegraphs a takedown attempt that Mousasi easily avoids, but Lawal gets it on the second attempt. Mousasi is on his side and takes a couple knees to the midsection while pressed against the cage. Lawal looks to take his opponent’s back, corrals the legs but eats some punches from Mousasi, who’s staying active on his back. Mousasi tries the butterfly guard again and fires off upkicks before pulling Lawal into full guard. Mousasi gets to his knees, but Lawal puts him on his back. Lawal stands over his opponent and dives in with a punch that Lawal easily blocks. The pace is starting to slow. Lawal gets to his feet, and Mousasi quickly follows. Mousasi unloads a knee and just misses on a straight right before Lawal grabs a leg and forces another takedown. Lawal stands again and fails again while trying to move in with a punch from above. Mousasi lands some upkicks and throws some hammerfists from below, and Lawal again allows him to return to his feet. Lawal shoots, Mousasi sprawls, but Lawal gets the takedown. Mousasi briefly has a triangle choke, but Lawal escapes. Mousasi kicks his way free, waits for Lawal to get out of the kneeling position and then takes his back and works for a choke, but time runs out. MMAjunkie.com scores it 10-9 for Lawal, but Mousasi may have gotten some momentum.

Round 3 – Mousasi opens with a body kick and lands a left jab. Lawal looks to be pretty tired. Lawal fakes a Superman punch and eats a short counter. Lawal throws a left-right that is blocked and just gets out of the way of a wild left. Mousasi lands a lunging right, the fighters clinch, and Mousasi lands a knee to the stomach. Lawal unloads some punches, but Mousasi covers up. Lawal then bumrushes his opponent for the takedown. Working from inside full guard, Lawal does little, and the ref calls for action. Lawal gets through a right from top position and then stands and nearly eats an upkick. He returns to the mat as Mousasi tries to walk up the cage with his back. Lawal pulls him back to the mat and delivers punches to the body. Mousasi pulls him back into guard, and the pace again slows. Lawal wings some sloppy punches from his knees, but Mousasi deflects. However, the next barrage get through, though there’s not a whole lot behind them. Lawal now works punches to the body between deep breaths. Lawal closes out the round with more punches to the head. MMAjunkie.com scores it 10-9 for Lawal.

Round 4 – Mousasi throws a low kick and misses with a left jab. Lawal lands a nice left and then scores a double-leg takedown. Mousasi continues with the upkicks before Lawal returns to full guard. Lawal stands again but misses when moving in. The action stalls while they’re on the mat against the fence. Lawal postures up and lands a couple punches but eats an upkick on the way back in. Lawal lands some short punches from the top position, and Mousasi throws some soft hammerfists from his back. “Big” John McCarthy calls for a standup. Lawal shoots, and a tired Mousasi tries to sprawl. Lawal, though, gets his takedown and moves into side control. Lawal uses the position to catch a breather before throwing some punches. Mousasi deflects most of them. The pace has become very sluggish. MMAjunkie.com scores it 10-9 for Lawal.

Round 5 – Lawal shoots after a punch, but Mousasi snuffs it out. Mousasi throws a lazy right and is quickly put on his back once again. Lawal stands over his opponent and looks for an opening. He eventually returns to guard when he can’t find one. The pace again slows while the fighters are on the mat. Mousasi throws some punches from his back, but they don’t do much. The ref calls for a timeout and warns his opponent about illegal kicks to a downed opponent. Lawal is given time to recover but looks fine. McCarthy issues a one-point deduction to make this an even more lopsided affair. After the restart in the downed position, Lawal and Mousasi trade punches. Lawal gets the better of it and continues pressing his opponent into the fencing. Mousasi gets to his knees, and Lawal takes his back. Mousasi wisely rolls to his back and then gets to his feet. Lawal shoots, Mousasi defends, but Lawal clings to his hips. Mousasi breaks free, and we restart. Mousasi lands a nice right but then goes airborne from another takedown. Mousasi has a cut between his eyes. Lawal catches a breather and then returns to his feet, and McCarthy calls for a standup. The fighters trade punches and connect before Lawal seals the round and fight with a final takedown. MMAjunkie.com scores it 10-9 for a clean sweep for what should be a new champ.
Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal def. Gegard Mousasi via unanimous decision (49-45, 49-45, 49-45) – to become new Strikeforce light-heavyweight champion.

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