Cub Swanson explains comments saying MMA media should have ‘3 amateur fights’

Cub Swanson started one hell of a talking point this past month.

Sharing his thoughts that MMA media should have “3 amateur fights,” the featherweight icon recently explained what he was getting at with his tweet.

MMA media friends, it's all @thegoze's fault that @CubSwanson called us out! 😜

But in all seriousness, we appreciate this explanation of his "3 amateur fights" tweet that caused such a stir. #Respect 🤝

Full interview: https://t.co/Q6ZAFKGu0o pic.twitter.com/5DVp1GWLVc

— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) March 12, 2021

“I really didn’t mean too much by it,” Swanson began when speaking on MMA Junkie Radio. “It was more of a hypothetical; ‘Hey, wouldn’t it be nice if MMA media kind of understood what we were coming from a little bit more than just as a fan.’ You could experience what we experience and you could possibly understand our process on a deeper level. And that was just wishful thinking. But when I went back and read it, I got, ‘Oh, that’s pretty direct, the way I said it.’ So I could see how it was taken that way.

“I do appreciate the discussion that it brought and I thought that was pretty cool to see both sides. There was some arguing but there was a lot of discussion, it was nice.”

Regarding engagement, Swanson’s tweet was met with 948 replies and 424 quote tweets and went on for a couple of days.

27-11 overall, Cub Swanson currently rides a solid two-fight winning streak after a war with Kron Gracie and a second-round TKO of Daniel Pineda. Coming up this Saturday night at UFC Vegas 21, the 37-year old knockout artist returns as he faces a tantalizing striker in Giga Chikadze.

As for the potential of media and fighting mixing as closely as Swanson suggested, he understands both sides to the discussion.

“It did make me think, both sides are kind of on the same boat,” Cub Swanson said. “Me as a fighter, if you write a story, and if it offends me somehow or makes me feel some type of way, maybe you don’t understand what I was going through in this camp. Because this is my life, you know? I’m doing this camp and living life then trying to perform and you guys get to write something about me.

“I think it goes both ways where if you had to write something and a fighter was trying to attack you about it, I’m sure there’s many times that media is thinking the same thing. Like, ‘Ah, you guys don’t understand how our job works and some pressures we might be feeling, and you don’t understand a deadline or that we have to ask this certain question.’ I think it would be nice if both sides could understand each other deeper but I don’t know if that’s really that realistic.”