Frankie Edgar got the job done against Cub Swanson again at UFC Fight Night 128 — just in different fashion than the first time.
The longtime featherweight contender defeated Swanson by unanimous decision in the event’s co-main event on Saturday night in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Edgar first met Swanson in a UFC main event in November 2014 and won by last-second submission. Throughout that fight, Edgar dominated Swanson with his wrestling. In the rematch, however, Edgar stayed on his feet for almost all the fight, yet still outstruck his opponent.
Edgar used his range, pace, and volume to pick Swanson apart on the feet. It was a somewhat surprising result, simply because the former 155-pound champ was so dominant on the ground in the first fight — it seemed likely he would return to the tools that got him the dominant victory three and a half years ago. But nonetheless, less than two months removed from the first knockout loss of his veteran career, Edgar raised eyebrows like he so often does.
What was the highlight of the fight?
The highlight of the fight is that Edgar didn’t get absolutely starched by Swanson just after getting stopped by future title challenger Brian Ortega at UFC 222 in early March. Even though he won, I’m still not sure Edgar returning to the cage so soon after the disappointing loss was a good idea; ultimately it paid off, but it could have gone so, so poorly for Edgar. It was far from a guarantee that he would look his usual self against Swanson on Saturday in his home state, in front of his family and friends.
So the fact that nothing terrible happened to Edgar, whose better days are most likely behind him, was quite relieving, and the best part of the Swanson rematch. And hey, maybe Edgar does still have what it takes to contend at 145 pounds — only time will tell.
Where do these two go from here?
Edgar called for the winner of Max Holloway vs. Ortega, which takes place July at UFC 226 for the UFC featherweight title. I’m not opposed to that, especially if “Blessed” successfully defends the title. We were supposed to see Holloway vs. Edgar last December, then again in March, and we still have yet to — and it’s a fight I’d still watch.
That said, Edgar has a family to tend to, he’s gone through some personal losses over the past few weeks, and he’s fought twice in the past two months. He should take a bit of time off and come back closer to the end of the year.
Swanson fell short again to Edgar, but it’s not the worst loss of his career, because at the end of the day, he was the underdog, and he’d lost to Edgar before. Swanson can still hang with most of the elite featherweights, but he’ll never be in title contention again. I’d like to see a rematch with Ricardo Lamas occur next, but Lamas happens to be booked against Mirsad Bektic in June. Perhaps Swanson can face the loser of that bout. A fight against Josh Emmett wouldn’t be a bad option, either.
Watch now, later, or never?
Edgar vs. Swanson 2 isn’t absolute must-see TV, but it was enjoyable enough to warrant a watch — especially with no UFC for a few weeks; you’ll have a lot of time on your hands! — if you didn’t catch it live.
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