UFC on Fox Primer: Cub Swanson vs. Ricardo Lamas

UFC® on Fox Weigh-In at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium on Friday, November 11, 2011 in Santa Monica, CA. (Photos by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images) via UFC.com

In a Featherweight fight, Cub Swanson (15-4; UFC Debut) meets Ricardo Lamas (10-2; 1-0 UFC) as part of the UFC on Fox 1 card. This is the seventh of the nine prelim fights. Neither man is currently ranked in the Featherweight USA Today/BE Consensus Rankings. The prelims will be streamed online at FoxSports.com and Facebook starting at 4:45 p.m. ET.

This is a contest between two solid veterans of the WEC. Both men had long runs in the company and made the transition to the UFC earlier this year when the two organizations merged. They are both well-rounded fighters who have experience in jiu jitsu and other disciplines. Swanson adds a kickboxing base to his jiu jitsu, while Lamas complements it with wrestling, and that clash between striking and wrestling could end up deciding the winner in this fight.

How do these two stack up?

Swanson: 28 years old | 5'7"
Lamas: 29 years old | 5'8" | 69" reach

What have these two done recently?

Swanson: W - Mackens Semerzier (SD) | L - Chad Mendes (UD) | W - John Franchi (Sub)
Lamas: W - Matt Grice (TKO) | L - Yuri Alcantara (KO) | W - Dave Jansen (UD)

How did these two get here?

Cub Swanson made his WEC debut all the way back in 2007. In his time with the company, Swanson faced many of the organization's top names, including Jose Aldo, Jens Pulver, and Chad Mendes. Unfortunately, Swanson ended up on the losing end of all these big fights. This Greg Jackson trainee has had a tough year in 2011. Twice, he has been scheduled to face Eric Koch in what would be Swanson's UFC debut, and twice that fight has been cancelled due to a Swanson injury. I can't expect that after a year off and two fight canceling injuries Swanson will be at 100% here.

Ricardo Lamas is a Chicago area fighter with good wrestling credentials from college. He has a very impressive WEC debut in 2009 when he upset veteran Bart Palaszewski. He went 4-2 in the WEC at Lightweight, then made the drop down to 145 when he switched over to the UFC earlier this year. His UFC debut was another impressive victory as he stopped Matt Grice in the first round. He's yet to really capitalize on the momentum from that win over Bartimus, but he definitely has the potential to emerge as a contender in the future.

Why should you care?

Apologies to Swanson, but Lamas is the one who draws my interest here. He's a good prospect who has shown the potential to do very well. Another stoppage win here could help him gain some footing at Featherweight.

More UFC on Fox preview coverage from Bloody Elbow after the jump.

SBN coverage of UFC on Fox 1: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos

UFC on Fox: Cain Velasquez Vs. Junior Dos Santos Weigh In Highlight Videos - Matthew Roth

UFC on Fox: Clay Guida Vs. Ben Henderson For Number One Contender - Matthew Roth

UFC on Fox Weigh-In Results: Velasquez - 249, Dos Santos - 239 - Tim Burke

UFC on Fox 1: Clay Guida vs. Ben Henderson Dissection - Dallas Winston

UFC on Fox 1: Dustin Poirier vs. Pablo Garza Dissection - Dallas Winston

UFC on Fox: Saying Goodbye to Gladiator Man With an Examination of Gladiatorial History

UFC Sells Out Advertising Space for Debut on Fox, Attracts Big Name Sponsors - Leland Roling

UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs dos Santos Staff Picks and Predictions

UFC on Fox: For Champions, What A Difference Five Years Can Make - Josh Nason

UFC on Fox: Cain Velasquez Career Retrospective Part 3 - Fraser Coffeen