Robbie Lawler earns split decision win over Carlos Condit in instant classic

Robbie Lawler needed all five rounds and a flurry at the finish line to earn a very close, split decision win over Carlos Condit in a championship fight for the ages at UFC 195.

Most expected the fight between Lawler and Condit to be an instant classic and the two welterweight knockout artists did not disappoint as they went to war for 25 minutes and left nothing in the cage when they were done.

As expected, Lawler took to the center of the Octagon as soon as the fight started as Condit countered with his considerable kicking game. Lawler continued to press forward as he tried to trap Condit against the cage, but his aggressive backfired as he got caught with a hard counter punch that put him down on the mat for a moment.

Lawler quickly bounced back to his feet, but Condit knew right away that he had the power to hurt the champion.

From that exchange moving forward, Condit was in control while landing a much higher volume of strikes. Lawler was stuck playing defense for the biggest part of the remainder of the round.

Condit continued with his kicking game to open round two but he got caught with his hands down for a moment during one combination and Lawler plowed him with a huge right hook that landed flush and put Condit down.

Condit landed on the mat with a thud, but quickly pulled guard before Lawler could do anymore damage.

The third round saw Condit come back with a higher volume of strikes, including a series of kicks and knees to the body. Lawler countered with huge punches to the head, with Condit walking into a couple hard shots whenever he got over aggressive.

Condit refused to slow down as the championship rounds began and his striking volume was just unrelenting as Lawler tried desperately to find a home for his power shots.

Condit finally found an opening during one big exchange with a punch landing just behind Lawler's ear that wobbled the champion against the cage. Condit pressed forward with a barrage of strikes although he never stood directly in front of Lawler for too long, still respecting the power punching from his opponent.

Knowing that the fight could be slipping away from him, Lawler came out and got in Condit's face as soon as the fifth round started, where he landed a big right hand that blasted the challenger in the head.

Despite eating the champion's best shot, Condit still continued to land with volume as his strikes found a home on Lawler's head and body.

With just over a minute to go, Lawler uncorked a huge punch that tagged Condit again, staggering the challenger and putting him in defensive mode trying to survive the onslaught.

Lawler kept head hunting with punches but somehow Condit survived and fired back with punches of his own. The two fighters ultimately stood in front of each other and just opened up with an insane exchange until the final horn sounded to bring a stop to an incredible title fight.

When the judges returned their scores, two cards read 48-47 in favor of Lawler with the third coming back 48-47 for Condit, but the split decision went to the champion, who has now successfully defended the welterweight title on two occasions.

"Carlos is a hell of a fighter," Lawler said following the win. "Comes from one of the best camps in the world, he had a great game plan, we battled it out, there was two winners tonight and still, let's do it again.

"He was everything they said he was," Lawler said. "He's tough as hell, he's technical as hell and he's in shape."

It was a very close decision in the end and Condit thought as the scores were rendered that he had done enough to earn the victory and win the welterweight title. Unfortunately, Condit came up just one round short on a single scorecard that ultimately cost him the victory.

"It was close but there was a chance that I was ahead," Condit said. "But I never rely on that. I knew he was going to come out guns blazing."

Condit actually outlanded Lawler by a total of 177-93 in striking, but it seemed like the judges gave more weight to the champion's power punches than the challenger's volume over five rounds.

"I felt like I had three rounds in the bag but that's why you don't leave it to the judges," Condit said in defeat.

It's a heartbreaking loss for Condit, who falls to 0-2 in his career as he tried to claim the undisputed welterweight title for the second time. As for Lawler, he proved once again that he's one of the toughest and grittiest fighters on the planet and it's going to take a lot to steal that championship from around his waist.