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Should a decision win over an unranked opponent really net Cub Swanson a UFC title shot?

[sigallery id=”7FzBEWxB4vcQGXbQT6wNrb” title=”Swanson def. Lobov” type=”sigallery”]

Cub Swanson was standing there in the cage, breathless and a little bruised after five rounds with Artem Lobov, a man he was expected to annihilate, which might be why he looked just a little bit sheepish as he brought up the possibility of a UFC featherweight title fight.

It wasn’t so much a demand as a suggestion. As in, hey, if you’re looking for ideas, here’s one. Go ahead and give Swanson the winner of that Jose Aldo vs. Max Holloway fight. Because why not?

Of course, one potential answer to the question of why not came just moments earlier in the main event of UFC Fight Night 108, when Swanson (25-7 MMA, 10-3 UFC) earned a clear, though not excessively dominant decision over an unranked opponent who’s now lost exactly as many fights as he’s won.

It wasn’t a bad performance by either man. In fact, it was probably a net positive for Lobov (13-13-1 MMA, 2-3 UFC), who proved that he can block punches with his face for 25 minutes and still remain dangerous to anyone unfortunate enough to wander into his limited striking range. Most people expected almost nothing from him in this fight. Under those circumstances, doing anything counts as a pleasant surprise.

Not so for Swanson. He came into the fight as a huge betting favorite, riding a yearlong winning streak that included a victory in one of the best fights of 2016. Fighting Lobov at all seemed like a baffling step backward, sold to us with the explanation that it was necessary solely because Lobov had questioned Swanson’s courage and toughness.

At the risk of stating the obvious, that reasoning is just plain dumb. Anyone who’s seen more than 30 seconds of Swanson at work already knows that those questions have been asked and answered. Challenging Swanson on toughness is like accusing Shaquille O’Neal of being short: Reasonable people skip right past the step of considering your claim and go straight to wondering what you hope to gain for yourself by making it.

In this case it was obvious. Lobov wanted a bigger fight than what his record and reputation should have afforded him. Because the UFC apparently lacked better ideas for Swanson, he got it. And even in defeat he managed to gain a little credibility, though he had to pay for it in blood and brain cells.

It’s Swanson who got the rougher end of the exchange, since how’s he supposed to make the case for career advancement off a decision win against a guy who was a walking punchline before this?

The good news for Swanson is that, when it comes to title shots in today’s UFC, these kinds of logical progressions are unfashionable. We are arguably less concerned than we’ve ever been with the concept of “deserving” a title shot. It’s not about what makes sense; it’s about what promoters can sell.

And Swanson? He’s a worthwhile commodity in that sense, for many of the same reasons that the UFC was able to convincingly pretend like Lobov was a main event fighter as long as Swanson was his opposite. It all comes down to reputation. Swanson’s is as a man who will give you a gritty, exciting fight, and this is true whether he’s fighting a top-ranked opponent or just another regional tough guy.

Honestly, depending on the weight class and the timing, that can be enough. Title shots have been granted for less. And as long as Conor McGregor remains thoroughly uninterested in defending any of the UFC titles he’s won, least of all the featherweight strap he was forced to vacate, why not throw Swanson in there when the Aldo-Holloway dust clears?

But then, you could have made the same argument after Swanson’s last win. Aside from a paycheck and a win on his record, he didn’t stand to gain much at all against Lobov. It was a situation in which the best he could do is prove to be who we already thought he was.

To his credit, he did his job in Nashville. He didn’t even complain about what a bum deal it was for him. It was the best of an awkward situation. If he’s lucky, it might even earn him a crack at the belt, despite all the sound reasoning that says it shouldn’t.

And for more on UFC Fight Night 108, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

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