The lines between mixed martial arts and pro wrestling are becoming increasingly blurred.
One of the names blurring the lines is former UFC fighter “Filthy” Tom Lawlor, who now makes his name in pro wrestling for Major League Wrestling. When speaking to Fightful.com recently about the transition and crossover, we asked if there are ever any of his fellow wrestlers that want to test their skills with the MMA veteran ahead of events.
“Nobody wants to roll with me before the shows, nobody has ever asked that. Not even close. Actually, Eddie Kingston called me out. He’s trained by one of my best friends. He called me out to train one day, and I showed up but he was nowhere to be found. Eddie Kingston’s the one guy to call me out and he no-showed. I have trained with Davey Boy Smith Jr., and he’s very good, but that was a separate situation. He was getting ready for a competition and he was in Las Vegas,” Lawlor recalled. “I think (Kingston) is more of a street fighter, anyway.”
Lawlor doesn’t have many people trying him in that regard as he’s moved to pro wrestling. However, he is quick to admit that there are a few names along the way who made good impressions on him from a grappling perpective.
“There are some guys like ‘Hot Sauce’ Tracy Williams. I would 100 percent say he could go in there and handle himself after being in the ring with him a couple of times. If I had to say, I’d pick Kingston. There’s a guy in the Pacific Northwest, Julian Whyte, who surprised me a bit when we were chain wrestling. I’m sure a guy like Jonathan Gresham would do well. He’s one of those guys that if I can get in there without a ton of stuff called and have a good match, that tells me he can probably do it on the fly in a real situation, as well,” said Lawlor.
Thus far in his pro wrestling career, Lawlor has taken on former UFC fighter Matt Riddle, Olympic wrestler Jeff Cobb, and teamed with longtime friend and training partner Seth Petruzelli.
You can catch Lawlor on Major League Wrestling’s “Fusion” program on beIN Sports weekly.
