Cub Swanson: Ricardo Lamas Refuses To Fight Me
No. 4 –ranked UFC featherweight Cub Swanson has racked up an impressive five-fight win streak in a crowded division. Last seen finishing the dangerous Dennis Siver at UFC 162, Swanson has absolutely been on fire as of late.
The momentum has Swanson actively campaigning for a top-level bout, and his most frequent call out has undoubtedly been the No.2-ranked Ricardo Lamas. Lamas is on a nice streak of his own, reaching four straight wins with a technical knockout of Erik Koch at UFC on Fox 6. But that was back in January, and Lamas still doesn’t have a fight scheduled after Chan Sung Jung was shifted out of their bout to replace Anthony Pettis in UFC 163’s main event. Swanson made his displeasure about the situation known via Twitter:
I keep asking the @ufc for the Lamas fight but he is Refusing to fight me. Does that mean that I’m the #1 contender by default? @danawhite
— Cub Swanson (@CubSwanson) October 8, 2013
The matchup definitely sounds like a logical pairing, but there’s just one setback to book this fight: Lamas was the last man to defeat Swanson, finishing him with a slick arm triangle choke at UFC on Fox 1. That makes the bout a tough sell for Swanson, and the UFC apparently isn’t biting quite yet.
Featherweight is an absolutely stacked division with the No. 1-ranked Chad Mendes on a tear of his own after knocking out No. 9 Clay Guida at UFC 164 in August. He’ll face No. 8 Nik Lentz at UFC on Fox 9. “Money” also owns a win over Swanson in the WEC. So does longtime division champ Jose Aldo Jr., so despite Swanson’s great run, top name bouts are becoming hard to come by.
Former lightweight champion B.J. Penn will join the division early next year to face off with his No. 3ranked rival Frankie Edgar. Jung is on the shelf with the shoulder injury he suffered against Aldo. No. 6 Dustin Poirier needs a new opponent after his impressive victory over Koch at UFC 164, and he’s a fresh face for Swanson. If the UFC brass won’t grant Swanson a rematch with Lamas, should the “Diamond” be next on his list?
