'Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine' results: 'King Mo' stops Larkin with ground and pound

"King Mo" ruled his court with iron fists tonight.

While displaying his usual world-class wrestling, Muhammed Lawal also showed his dangerous ground and pound, and he battered fellow light heavyweight Lorenz Larkin en route to a second-round TKO victory.

The main-card fight was part of "Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine" and aired on Showtime. It took place at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.

Lawal scored an early takedown after grabbing a single leg, elevating Larkin, and slamming him to the mat. He then controlled the action from the top and unloaded ground and pound from a kneeling position for most of the first round.

Larkin valiantly fought off a takedown attempt to start the second round and unloaded some punches, but Lawal eventually forced the fight to the mat once again. Once Larkin's head was pinned against the fencing, Lawal unloaded a vicious barrage of punches. As a dozen shots landed flush, Larkin nearly went limp, and ref Kim Winslow halted the action, perhaps a few shots too late.

Lawal initially seemed angry over the late stoppage but later said he respected the ref's decision to allow a definitive finish.

The TKO stoppage came at the 1:32 mark of the second round.

"He surprised me, man, because I couldn't get my right hand off," Lawal said. "He surprised me with his control."

Lawal (9-1 MMA, 4-1 SF), a former Strikeforce champ, has won both of his fights via knockout since losing his belt, and he said he wants a chance to reclaim it. Larkin (12-1 MMA, 3-1 SF) suffers the first loss of his two-and-a-half-year career.

Up-to-the-fight results include:
Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal def. Lorenz Larkin via TKO (punches) - Round 1, 1:32 Tyron Woodley def. Jordan Mein via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27) Tarec Saffiedine def. Tyler Stinson via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28) Nah-Shon Burrell def. James Terry via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28) Gian Villante def. Trevor Smith via TKO (punches) - Round 1, 1:05 Ricky Legere def. Chris Spang via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) Estevan Payan def. Alonzo Martinez via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) For the latest on "Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine," check out the MMA Events section of MMAjunkie.com.

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