There were several standout moments at UFC Tampa last night, with perhaps the best of the bunch being Cub 'Killer' Swanson's insane third-round knockout of Billy Quarantillo in the co-main event.
The 44-fight MMA veteran was expected to announce his retirement; But after earning another post-fight bonus and a standing ovation from the crowd, it appears Cub Swanson is having second thoughts about whether it's time to hang up the gloves.
Photo by Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC
Cub Swanson addresses retirement speculation after insane knockout at UFC Tampa
Speaking to Michael Bisping in the octagon following his sensational knockout win at UFC Tampa, Swanson refused to definitively confirm his departure from the sport.
“Well, I told my wife that this would be the last one, so we'll see,” said the popular veteran as he then addressed the crowd: “I'm quite an old guy, I want to say that I appreciate that you let a 40-year-old father come here to entertain you!”
At the post-fight press conference, Swanson explained why he is divided on this; especially since Billy Quarantillo's finish is as good a sendoff as you can hope for in the UFC.
“My biggest thing during this fight was not to put pressure on myself to perform… I tried to be fast and loose, paint a picture and make it beautiful – something I can be proud of, so if it is the last that I can say, 'Man, I'm happy with that'.”
Swanson said he will “always be tempted” by the idea of another fight, but he also has both a family and a growing team of athletes to take care of.
“We'll see how I heal; I have three small children who are getting older now and definitely want my attention more. I have a number of fighters on my team, Team Bloodline, that I manage and coach, I put a lot of effort into them.
“I'm honestly more excited to be a coach right now. I love this sport and the nice thing about being on the other side of the cage is that I don't go home with lumps and bruises.”
Interestingly, while Dana White would say such a flush KO is “the way to go” when it comes to retirement, he would be happy to offer Swanson another fight, if he so chooses.
“This is the right choice, and what's funny is that he says: 'I promised my wife this would be the last one, but I don't know if we'll see it'… When a fighter wins and especially just as spectacularly wins if he does tonight, it's so hard for these guys to walk away.
“But to be honest, if Cub says, 'I promised this to my wife, I'm leaving,' I'll be happy for him… If he says, 'You know what, I definitely have one left in me ', I don't disagree with him.”
Cub Swanson teases that there is one fight where he can survive
Cub Swanson is and always will be a UFC legend – and is one of the few active athletes already inducted into the Hall of Fame; that's because of his iconic confrontation with Doo Ho Choi in 2016.
When Swanson was asked if a rematch with Choi might entice him to stay for another fight, 'Killer' simply acknowledged, “That's possible.”
“Although he looked great in his last fight; That makes me want to sit back and relax a little bit… I just know the fans would be ecstatic about that, so it would be hard to say no to that, but we'll see.”
Indeed, Choi looked truly sensational in his last fight; a third-round KO over Nate Landwehr at UFC 310.
“I really don't have any names,” Swanson continued.
“Like I said, I took it one fight at a time, focused on myself and went out and put in great fights… I try not to look too far ahead when it comes to fighting.”
Whether Swanson returns for another fight remains to be seen, but whatever 'Killer' decides to do, he will have the support of the entire MMA community behind him.
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