Former Strikeforce champ 'King Mo' Lawal ends retirement, signs BKFC deal with debut set
Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal will fight for the first time since 2019 when he debuts with BKFC on Sept. 13.
Muhammed Lawal took his gloves off and announced his combat sports retirement nearly five years ago. His time away from competition is over, but the gloves will stay off.
The promotion announced Friday that Former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion and multi-time Bellator title challenger “King Mo” Lawal has signed a one-fight deal with BKFC and already has his promotional debut set.
Lawal, 43, will make his debut against Dave Mundell in a 185-pound bout at BKFC 66, which takes place Sept. 13 at Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Fla. Mundell is the reigning BKFC champion at 175 pounds but will move up to welcome Lawal to the ring.
“King Mo” hasn’t competed since November 2019, when he suffered a first-round knockout loss to Andrew Kapal at Bellator 233 in his MMA retirement bout. The result extended his losing skid to four fights, all of which came by stoppage due to strikes.
During his MMA career, Lawal (21-10) defeated notables such as Quinton Jackson, Jiri Prochazka, Linton Vassell, Cheick Kongo, and more. He served as a part-time coach at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Fla., during his fighting career, but following his retirement, became a full-time part of the gym.