"I trained really hard, put a lot of time in. I want a big fight. I've had two fights with really...

Ept_sports_mma_experts-314167983-1244925200

"I trained really hard, put a lot of time in. I want a big fight. I've had two fights with really tough opponents that weren't high-ranked (Ben Saunders, Jonathan Goulet) and I had a lot more to lose than to gain, and I accepted, Now I'm in a position where I want to have something to gain when I push myself as hard and train so hard. I want a title shot."

"And if not (I don't get the title shot), I'd love to fight Matt Hughes. He's one of the most decorated fighters in UFC history... it would be an honor to fight him."

-- Mike Swick on wanting to get the big fights.

HT: MMAWeekly.com

4 months ago Anton Tabuena 17 comments 0 recs |

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Swick vs Hughes would be a good matchup

Hopefully they’ll give Saunders a couple of building fights to recover, they rushed him into a fight with Swick when he needed more seasoning.

"the spirit of your average dumbass with more overblown rhetoric" OR "the self-appointed savior of MMA"

by Kid Nate on Jun 15, 2009 9:27 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

saunders might be better off getting cut. seriously. he doesnt need one or two fights against ufc competition because hes on the low end of the scale for what the ufc has right now. he needs about 6-7 fights outside the ufc to build his confidence and maybe face some better guys eventually. if he sticks around and gets put in with the brad blackburns of the world, you run the risk of him losing again and his confidence deteriorating to nothing.

i guess the ufc could keep him and have him fight bums there but im not sure that i want the ufc to be building up dan hornbuckle records.

by nigelzackit on Jun 15, 2009 9:45 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Saunders

Saunders can definitely hang in the UFC’s Welterweight division. Swick is a top 5 guy…no reason to write Saunders off for losing to a higher class fighter. I think Ben Saunders would definitely be competitive against top 10 Welterweights.

by MMAMoneyLine on Jun 15, 2009 10:12 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

so we’ve gone from several people picking him over to swick, to calling for him to be ousted from the ufc? seems a big drastic. if there’s a home for jonathan goulet in the ufc, there’s room for saunders. he is, after all, the most successful fighter to come out of his season of the ultimate fighter, and has alot more potential for growth than guys like danzig.

by woooburn on Jun 15, 2009 10:59 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

saunders vs. goulet

maybe?

In addition a fight vs. Johnson, or even Condit would be interesting to me (though he’d be underdog in each)

by Loot on Jun 15, 2009 11:55 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Saunders look really out of it in the Swick fight, and Swick is top 5, so I don’t know where you get the idea that he should be cut. I say put him back down at the bottom of the food chain and let him work his way back up again.

by kyfm621 on Jun 15, 2009 2:43 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Swick

I don’t know how much longer people can go without giving Swick credit. His only loss was to a heinously oversized Yushin Okami. Swick needs bigtime fights from here on out…St. Pierre, Alves, Koscheck, Hughes, Kampmann….

by MMAMoneyLine on Jun 15, 2009 10:09 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Perfect list and I’ll assume the ellipses includes Fitch. Swick has taken some dangerous fights and deserves his shot to crack the Welterweight elite.

"Japan is half-Machida" - iiowyn

by Day Man on Jun 15, 2009 11:19 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

What I don't get is the bashing he got for asking for a title fight

A fighter who doesn’t want a title shot is the one I’m worried about.

by jebushchrist on Jun 15, 2009 11:27 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

9-1 may warrant a shot

by Loot on Jun 15, 2009 11:57 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I'm a mark for Swick

but Saunders is a serious contender in the welterweight class. The only problem I have with Saunders is that he always looks like he’s in two minds when he’s in the octagon. If he ever was truly focused like he was in the Brandon Wolff fight, he’d really step up his game and be a lot closer to the the top five.

by JAYGK95 on Jun 15, 2009 11:43 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, I think a new camp would really get things going for Saunders, he has the physical capabilities, and enough talent to get him somewhere.

by kyfm621 on Jun 15, 2009 2:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

"Goulet" and "tough" should never be used in the same sentence

except to say that he finds it “tough to stand up” after getting KTFOed.

A wise man told me don't argue with fools
Cause people from a distance can't tell who is who

by thetakeover on Jun 15, 2009 1:35 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Goulet is incredibly tough as long as you don’t punch him in the chin. It’s his one weakness!

"I'm AJB and I endorse this nut-puncher."

by AJB on Jun 15, 2009 2:53 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I still think there is a lot of potential for Saunders

"My job is a decision-making job, and as a result, I make a lot of decisions." --George W. Bush, The Decider, Lancaster, Pa., Oct. 3, 2007

by lovingmma25 on Jun 15, 2009 2:09 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I'd honestly rather see

Swick vs. Kampmann for a title shot, than Swick/ Hughes. I just tend to think that Swick would absolutely shit kick Hughes, but if the UFC does put it together, and Swick does win, then I could see him getting the next shot at the belt.

Joe Silva/ DW might be positioning Swick for the next title shot, and possibly Kampmann for the next. Here’s how I see it going down:

If GSP retains the belt against Alves, and Swick wins his next fight impressively, I foresee GSP/ Swick in the near future. Then, maybe Kampmann or Rumble Johnson somewhere down the road (and in the meantime, a possible superfight w/ Anderson).

If Alves upsets St. Pierre, then the first fight that makes sense (given he wins his fight) is Fitch/ Alves II. The first fight was a back and forth affair, and both fighters have greatly improved since then, very compelling matchup. If Fitch somehow loses the fight against Paulo Thiago, then Swick would probably be next in line, with Paulo and Kampmann right behind him.

Then, you have guys like Rumble Johson and Dan Hardy making noise at WW; maybe they should be matched up to position the winner for a #1 contender fight.

At any rate, the possibilities are exciting and endless.

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by ElliotMatheny on Jun 15, 2009 3:02 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Hughes is a better fight for Swick than Kampmann because people actually know who Hughes is. Kampmann is damn tough and doesn’t have the name recognition to make taking that fight worthwhile for Swick.

Bolts from the Blue // "Game over." - Jamal Williams
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by Richard Wade on Jun 15, 2009 6:52 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs