Cub Swanson has competed 10 times inside the Octagon and 29 times overall in his career.
Fight No. 30 Saturday night vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri at UFC Fight Night 92 will be the first in a while where Swanson (22-7) doesn’t enter the Octagon questioning his desire.
After besting Hacran Diaz, Swanson found a new ray of sunshine for himself, as he told MMAjunkie.
“It was probably one of my most emotional wins, mentally,” Swanson said. “I just asking myself, ‘Do you still got it?’ That question was there. I wasn’t going to keep doing this if I wasn’t going to show that I belong here. … I didn’t want to see a decline in my performance. If I see a decline in my performance, I’m doing myself a disservice.”
Swanson has posted a 7-3 mark during his time with the UFC, including wins over Jeremy Stephens, Dustin Poirier and Ross Pearson. He was bested by Max Holloway and former champion Frankie Edgar after compiling a six-fight win streak between 2012-14.
“The title is always going to be there,” Swanson said. “If I keep winning, it’s going to be there. Do I want to obsess about it? No, because you never know what’s going to happen. That’s what really sucked it out of me. For me, it’s just about having those big wins and big fights and just having fun with it. If the opportunity comes, of course, I’m going to take it, and of course, I’m going to want to do it. But if it doesn’t? Whatever.”