Ok and Bellator.... Bellator and TNA Wrestling to announce 'King Mo' signing today by Dann Stupp on May 10, 2012 at 9:30 am ET Former Strikeforce light-heavyweight champion Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal has a new home. Bellator and TNA Wrestling executives have set a conference call for 2 p.m. ET (11 a.m. PT) today to announce a "major talent deal." It's the signing of Lawal (8-1), who will split his time between MMA (Bellator) and pro wrestling (TNA) once healed from a knee injury. Terms of the deal are expected to be announced during the media call. Spike TV airs TNA Wrestling, and Bellator moves to the cable channel in 2013. Strikeforce severed ties with the 31-year-old amateur-wrestling standout back in March. After defeating Lorenz Larkin via second-round knockout at "Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine" in January, Lawal failed a post-fight drug test due to the steroid Drostanolone. Lawal blamed the failed test on an over-the-counter testosterone supplement he used to combat instability in his knee. Nonetheless, the Nevada State Athletic Commission suspended him nine months, overturned the win to a no-contest, and fined the fighter $39,000. Following the March 27 hearing, Lawal took particular aim at NSAC commissioner Pat Lundvall, who asked the fighter whether he read and understood English in relation to a pre-fight questionnaire that required him to disclose any medications he had taken two weeks prior to the fight, as well as any injuries he might have sustained. Lawal called Lundvall a "racist *****" in a tweet following the hearing. UFC president Dana White then decided to cut Lawal from the Zuffa roster. Lawal ultimately apologized in a personal phone call with the commissioner, and as recently as this past month, White didn't discount the possibility of Lawal returning to the organization, as MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) recently reported. "We'll see how this whole thing goes down," White said on April 14. "The fact that he called her and reached out to her, I mean that's what he should have done. It's respectable. I respect that." But instead, Lawal will join Bellator's 205-pound division, which is one of Bellator's shallowest weight classes. The current champ is Christian M'Pumbu, who lost a non-title fight with Travis Wiuff back in October. Lawal's suspension runs until Oct. 7, which means he likely wouldn't be cleared in time for the start of a season-seven light-heavyweight tournament. He's also still recovering from a knee surgery and subsequent staph infection that followed his January fight. Dude must be flat broke? :think Surprised at him signing with TNA. He's hardly struck me as the Pro Wrestling type. His mike skills certainly left a lot to be desired when he was guest commentator in Japan at the K-1. Dude was F'in clueless. Tragic to see a stud like Mo relegated to the lower leagues. Goes to show how tough these fighters do have it. As his ban is for a year and im sure the UFC would want him back.
Mo's a huge pro-wrestling fan who very nearly went into pro-wrestling before going into MMA and has long talked about doing pro-wrestling after his fighting career. He's even had some basic pro-wrestling training a few years ago. They key obviously is that Bellator and TNA are now stablemates under the Viacom banner and have been looking at ways to cross-promote for some time. There are rumours that Bellator may eventually move to a Thursday 10pm slot so it can air straight after TNA in the states, so capitalising on the wrestling audience as a lead-in. This type of synergy is just another example of this. As for WWE - WWE has tried to sign MMA fighters in the recent past (most notably Bob Sapp) but they've always run into the issue that fighters don't want the schedule that comes with being in the WWE. TNA has the advantage of having a much lighter schedule.
There's always been a strong link between Pro Wrestling and MMA, it's no surprise Mo made the cross over considering I hope his career doesnt stagnate in Bellator, he's an interesting personality, MMA needs them ATM
Mo was considering signing for the WWF before he turned to MMA. I'm not surprised, TNA will give him the schedule where he can still train, whereas Vince, whilst liking legit' fighters (he's always given a push to someone with the reputation of being tough, although Bart Gunn was not the man he wanted :yep) would give him a schedule that would end Mo's fighting career. Bellators 205 division, if I'm not wrong, is their absolute shittest. Can't even remember who the champ' is Let's hope they bring in some good guys. When is the ban up?
Nice work. Didn't see this. Shamrock and Severn are the two MMA fighters I can think of (Tank Abbott was sucker punching fools in WCW feuding Goldberg in a bout that never happened) but Vince loves collegiate wrestlers and, as the WWF has always marketed them, 'shoot fighters'.
**** it, chuck him in with Konrad :yep Mo comes over to UFC to challenge 'Bones' for the HW title in 2014 :hey
Bringing Shamrock in was actually Bret Hart's idea - and he did much of Ken's early training (which is why Ken stopped progressing after Bret left). Its partly Shamrock flaming out and crying off to Pride in 1999 that started Vince to worry about fighters. TBH Vince's not the one into college wrestlers - that was Jim Ross his head of talent relations from the mid-nineties to mid-noughties. Vince prefers body builders, which is not surprising considering that his father's WWWF was always a big-man company while other promotion in the South and Mid-West (inc. Mid South where Ross broke in) preferred using college athletes to help portray the sport as real. That was seen as less important in the more 'knowing' New York market. Plus after Lesnar, Angle and Lashley all imploded in relatively short time he began to worry that they couldn't cope with the schedule. They actually stopped recruiting from the NCAAs for awhile ('Jack Swagger' only got in by Ross going to bat for him) although they've thankfully reversed that.
Im sure I read Shammy say he was going to go into Pro Wrestling before he heard about Pancrase and had a few small show works too. That's what his early catch training was geared towards. It's when he met and trained with Funkai that he really developed his catch wrestling for non worked (as much as it was in Pancrase) NHB/MMA style fighting Brett taught him to work and sell again to a WWE level. The Pro Wrestling foundation was already there. Ken kinda when full circle twice - Work in his very early days - shoot in Pancrase/UFC - work in WWE and so on
Yeah Ken was a pro-wrestler when he went to Japan but nowhere near what would be expected for a major league wrestler. I think Meltzer once explained that Ken and Bob Shamrock went to see Bret at a show in California and pitched Ken to Bret who then went to bat with Vince.
Of course not, and anyone can learn from Bret, same as the Gracies in MMA imo. Didnt know it was Bret who pitched Ken though, I always assumed that was Jim Ross, as you said, he was responsible for bringing 'legit' guys by and large to the WWF Would have loved to have seen a shoot between Bret & Ken in the Dungeon though