Cub Swanson News

Chris Taylor - December 9, 2017

A key featherweight scrap between veteran Cub Swanson and undefeated contender Brian Ortega served as the main event of tonight’s UFC Fight Night card in Fresno, California. Brian Ortega submitted Cub Swanson in round two to put himself in title contention.

Justin Golightly - November 15, 2017

The UFC featherweight title lottery is finally over after Frankie Edgar was forced to bow out of the fight. Max Holloway will defend his belt at UFC 218 against the same man he took it away from at UFC 212: Jose Aldo. For awhile, it looked like Cub Swanson was the clear choice to step up to finally get his shot at the title, but things didn’t work out that way. Swanson will stay in his fight with Brian Ortega at UFC Fresno, which is the last fight on his contract. This begs the question, will Swanson explore free agency after the title shot snub? It sure sounds like it. “[Not giving me the Max Holloway fight because I was going into free agency] was never going to be an issue because I knew and they know that the fight wouldn’t happen unless we made a deal, which I’m sure we could have made a deal. But that wasn’t even offered. I haven’t been offered a new deal since all this happened [with UFC 218]. Dana did say that he’d like try to work something out, sit down and talk after the fight [with Brian Ortega], no matter what happens he said he wants to keep me around, but we could have came to terms before and made this fight happen and they know that.”

Tom Taylor - November 15, 2017

Originally, UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway was expected to defend his title against Frankie Edgar at UFC 218 this December 2. When Edgar was forced out of the fight with an injury, however, the search for a replacement challenger began. One of the frontrunners in this search was Cub Swanson, who is scheduled for a mid-December showdown with undefeated contender Brian Ortega. While Swanson was the most compelling option in the eyes of many fans, the UFC ultimately opted to pair Holloway with Aldo, the very man he beat to win the title back in June.

Justin Golightly - November 9, 2017

News hit last night that Frankie Edgar unfortunately had to drop out of his title fight with Max Holloway at UFC 218 because of a facial injury that requires surgery. Immediately there was an incredible swarm of fighters coming out to try and take advantage of Edgar’s misfortune. Cub Swanson was the first on the buzzer, hoping to avenge his loss and finally get a chance at gold. Both Jose Aldo and Ricardo Lamas have also expressed interest in leaving their fight together at UFC Winnipeg to potentially capture Holloway’s UFC featherweight title. His management just released a statement of the names in consideration, but stress that the champ is down to fight anyone. When you become the champ the right way, the division is cleaned out… Choices are limited but we’ll fight anyone. Cub, Ortega, Ferguson, Conor… we’re just waiting on the call. Respect to @frankieedgar who truly deserved this fight and wishing him a speedy recovery. #blessedera #ufc218 #represented #Repost @blessedmma ・・・ Injuries are part of this fight game. Frankies the man. Wish him a speedy recovery. Detroit, you guys are a bunch of tough mfers. I met many of you last month when we visited. You guys deserve the best fight card of the year and youre still gonna get it. I’m fighting no matter what. Santa is still coming early to Detroit, so get ready. Malice in the palace part 2 if we have to. I’ll see you soon.

Tom Taylor - October 10, 2017

Not long ago, we learned that fan favorite featherweight contender Cub Swanson planned on entering free agency after his UFC Fresno scrap with Brian Ortega, which marks the last obligation on his current UFC contract. Speaking to FloCombat this week, Swanson explained why he’s choosing to fight out his current contract.

Justin Golightly - October 5, 2017

You can’t talk about the UFC’s featherweight division without Cub Swanson. He’s been one of the top guys at his weight for a long time. After fighting in WEC, he put on a six-fight win streak in the UFC. His most recent losses are to Max Holloway and Frankie Edgar — the current champ and the current title challenger — with four more wins straight pushing them into the past. Matter of fact, all his losses are former champions or fighters who have fought for the title. This is one of the reasons that, after his fight with Brian Ortega, he will not renew his UFC contract. “It’s a power move. Of course, I want to get paid more. The thing people don’t understand is that I’ve got to a point where I’m making good money and it’s enough to live on, but it’s not retirement money. Not even close. I’ve been doing this for 13 years and I’m in the prime of my career, but at some point it’s going to dip off and I’d like to walk away before I start having really bad performances with enough money in my account to make smart investments and do the right things. I just want that opportunity. [Max Holloway fighting Frankie Edgar] is the 20th title fight since I’ve been in this division. I’ve been in the top tier of guys my entire career. It’s a little frustrating seeing somebody like Frankie, who is great, get tons of title fights. I just don’t understand it. I wanted some leverage for that [in my contract]. I’m next. They’re always saying, ‘We can’t guarantee anything,’ and it’s like, c’mon, yes, you can.”

Tom Taylor - October 2, 2017

After chasing a featherweight title shot, flirting with the idea of a fight with former featherweight champion Jose Aldo, and being called out by former lightweight Michael Johnson, fan favorite featherweight contender Cub Swanson finally has a fight booked. The all-action Jackson’s MMA staple will battle rising contender Brian Ortega in the main event of the UFC’s December 9th debut in Fresno, California. Swanson announced this fight, which an early frontrunner for Fresno’s Fight of the Night honors, on his social media channels.

Justin Golightly - September 28, 2017

At the beginning of the month, UFC lightweight contender Michael Johnson dropped a bombshell that he wanted to debut in the featherweight division against none other than Jose Aldo. What comes as a surprise to us, this wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision for Johnson. Turns out he was thinking about the move down the whole time. Former champ Aldo has a fight with Ricardo Lamas in the works, but that isn’t dissuading Johnson to set his eye on a serious challenge at featherweight. Now, Johnson says he wants to scrap with Cub Swanson. “I think me and Cub [Swanson] would be a great fight. I wanted [Jose] Aldo first, but it looks like him and Ricardo [Lamas] are going to fight, and man, I mean, Cub would be the next great option. I’ve gotten into this business with one thing on my mind, and that’s to fight the best guys in the division, to fight whoever’s the champ, whoever’s beaten everybody. Those are the guys I want to fight, so a fight with Cub, you know, that’s right up my alley. 

Chris Taylor - September 5, 2017

Perennial UFC featherweight contender Cub Swanson (25-7 MMA) is currently riding an impressive four fight win streak and is on the cusp of earning a shot at the promotions coveted featherweight title. Swanson was last seen in action this past April in the main event of UFC Fight Night 108 where he scored a unanimous decision victory over Artem Lobov.

Tom Taylor - August 1, 2017

Jose Aldo is no longer the UFC featherweight champion. That title now belongs to Hawaii’s Max Holloway who defeated the Brazilian great back in June. Now several months removed from his loss to Holloway, Aldo is beginning to weigh the options for his return to action. Given that Holloway is likely to be taking on Frankie Edgar next, Aldo seems to like Cub Swanson as the opponent for his next fight.

Tom Taylor - July 10, 2017

Back in June, streaking Hawaiian talent Max Holloway shook up the featherweight division by thrashing once-dominant champion Jose Aldo to a TKO victory. With the belt firmly around his waist, Holloway then shifted his focus to two men: Frankie Edgar and Cub Swanson, both of whom stand out as top contenders in the UFC featherweight division. In the wake of Holloway’s title win, both Edgar and Swanson argued their case for the next title shot. Both made good points, and both seemed to have a real chance of earning the shot they desired.

Russell Ess - June 12, 2017

There’s a new king in town for the UFC featherweight division as the “Blessed” era began with Max Holloway taking out Jose Aldo at UFC 212. Following the Hawaiian’s biggest win of his career and sporting the undisputed UFC featherweight title, former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar and Cub Swanson were quick to raise their hands to try and take a crack at the newly crowned champion.

bjpenndotcom - June 7, 2017

This past weekend, in the main event of UFC 212, interim UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway stepped into the Octagon with Jose Aldo, where he claimed the undisputed featherweight title. Immediately following the fight, many began to speculate as to who Holloway would defend his title against first, with the general consensus being that former UFC lightweight champion turned featherweight Frankie Edgar was the #1 contender. Holloway spoke at the post-fight press conference, and welcomed a fight with Edgar.

Tom Taylor - June 4, 2017

Last night, in the main event of UFC 212, streaking Hawaiian star Max Holloway sent a shockwave through the UFC featherweight division by defeating once-dominant featherweight king Jose Aldo with third-round strikes. With this impressive win, Holloway begins what could well be a very dominant reign as UFC featherweight champion. Though nothing is certain just yet, the next featherweight title shot seems like it belongs to former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar. While Edgar failed twice to capture gold against Aldo, he is currently on an impressive two-fight streak, having recently defeated game foes in Jeremy Stephens and Yair Rodriguez. His receiving a shot at Holloway would not be a hard sell.

Tom Taylor - May 17, 2017

From the early vantage point, December’s UFC 206 was widely considered to be a fairly weak card. In the end, however, the card delivered as one of the best year, making up for its lack of big names by producing some epic stoppages and perhaps the best fight in UFC history: a featherweight war between Cub Swanson and Doo Ho Choi. Despite a valiant effort against the far more experienced Swanson, Choi would lose this fight by decision, and return to South Korea with a new loss on his record, and plenty of bruises to show for it.

bjpenndotcom - April 27, 2017

In the main event of ‘UFC Fight Night: Nashville’, top ranked UFC featherweight veteran Cub Swanson stepped into the Octagon with unranked Artem Lobov for a highly anticipated fight which was prefaced by months and months of trash talk between the two men. When the pair stepped into the Octagon, they delivered an impressive fight, and both drew praise from not only the fans, but one another as well. Interestingly enough however, when the medical suspensions were released, it was revealed that Swanson would only be out for the minimum 7 days required. On the flip side, Artem Lobov would be suspended for a potential 60 days.

Tom Taylor - April 23, 2017

Last night, in the main event of the UFC’s latest trip to Nashville, Tennessee, featherweight veteran Cub Swanson defeated Artem Lobov with a hard-fought, unanimous decision. With this win, Swanson established himself as one of the top contenders in the division, and perhaps the most deserving man of a featherweight title shot. The next featherweight title fight will occur at UFC 212 this June, when undisputed champ Jose Aldo attempts to unify his title with the interim title owned by Max Holloway. Swanson could well meet the winner.

Tom Taylor - April 23, 2017

Last night, the UFC touched down in “Music City,” Nashville, Tennessee, with a 13-fight card. This card featured plenty of action, as Brandon Moreno scored an epic submission win over Dustin Ortiz on the undercard, Mike Perry picked up an elbow-induced KO of the year contender over Jake Ellenberger, and Al Iaquinta crushed Diego Sanchez in the co-main event. Though the main event, which pitted the UFC’s fourth-ranked featherweight Cub Swanson against Conor McGregor training parter Artem Lobov, did not produce a stoppage, it was no exception to the exciting tone of the card. As a massive betting underdog, Lobov was given little chance against his well-established foe. That said, the Russian-born Irishman hung in there remarkably well, even arguably winning the first round. In the second, however, Swanson began to find his groove, punishing his foe with a dizzying array of strikes – from jumping switch kicks to spinning elbows. Amazingly, Lobov was able to eat everything the powerful Swanson threw at him, which meant that fans got to enjoy five wild rounds of action.