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You look at the matchup between Ben Askren and Robbie Lawler at UFC 235 and right away it jumps out as the kind of fight that everybody knows what each guy’s thing is, and it’s just a question of finding out which one of them will get to do it.

For Askren, that thing includes takedowns, top control, the kind of striking any bullying big brother would respect, maybe even a submission if the situation cries out for one.

Lawler’s thing is a lot simpler: He wants to punch Askren in the head so that his limbs stop working. He’s got a real talent for it, too, if only he can stay upright and mobile long enough to use it.

But where things really differ for each man in this fight is the stakes. Lawler? Sure, he would very much like to win. At the same time, for all practical purposes he doesn’t exactly have to. He’s a former UFC welterweight champion, a fan-favorite slugger with an exciting style and a killer highlight reel, and even if he gets wrestled into a decision loss here it’s not like the UFC won’t still have plenty of use for him and his talents.

Askren, on the other hand, has to win. It’s a disaster for him if he doesn’t, for several different reasons. Which makes a top-notch knockout artist a pretty tough draw for such a make-or-break fight.

Consider where Askren is in his career right now. At 18-0, with one no-contest, his stats look pretty outstanding. He won the Bellator welterweight title, then gave it up to get out of his contract there, only to wind up over in ONE Championship, where he quickly claimed and then regularly defended another title.

Through it all, the criticism focused on his quality of competition. Especially in his post-Bellator era, Askren’s list of victims includes a lot of fighters whose names are recognizable only to their families.

What saved him from being labeled a lifelong can-crusher was the fact that it wasn’t his fault. The other big organizations didn’t want him. He could only fight the people who ONE Championship could give him. And once he’d done enough of that, he hung up his gloves and called it a career.

That retirement didn’t last long. Soon the UFC reevaluated its previous stance on Askren, until it eventually agreed to release former flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson in an informal “trade” that would free up Askren to sign with the UFC.

And now, at 34, he’s finally getting his chance. You really think you’re one of the world’s best welterweights? Think you can rag-doll the competition in the UFC the way you did all those others? Fine, here’s one. A former champ known for rudely separating people from consciousness. Now go out there and prove it.

That’s no easy task when it’s a) your first fight in a little over a year, and b) your first fight ever on the sport’s biggest stage. Lots of fighters have stumbled in their UFC debuts and still gone on to great things.

Still, it’s hard not to wonder if Askren will get leeway to do the same. He’s talked a big game from afar and stacked up wins overseas, but a loss in his UFC debut could instantly deflate that undefeated hype bubble. People will say he was never that good to begin with. They’ll say his record is padded and his accomplishments are hollow. They jump right to the worst possible interpretation, because of course they will after all that talk.

That’s part of the problem with staking your reputation on your perfect professional record. One bad night can spoil your whole routine – and anyone can have one bad night.

If Askren is feeling the effects of that pressure, he won’t admit it.

“I like the pressure,” he told reporters at a media lunch earlier this week. “This is what I came for. This is what I enjoy.”

In his UFC debut, it’s also exactly what he’s got. For a guy who’s never lost an MMA fight, here’s one he absolutely has to win. It’s not just for the sake of his future, but also to bolster the credibility of his past.

For more on UFC 235, visit the UFC Rumors section of the site.