10 Quick Questions with Mike Swick

Posted By Connor Bell on the Jul 3 2009

MMA Worldwide: So how’s everything going since your last fight?

Mike Swick: Good, I’m back to training now so everything is going really good.

MW: Any injuries from the fight?

MS: Yah, I injured my hand a little bit, but it’s getting a lot better and I’m back to full training again.

MW: So take us through your last fight with Ben Saunders.

MS: Well it was a little bit different then I expected I guess. I figured the majority of the time we’d stay on our feet and trade. After the first exchange he pulled guard and it got a little clinchy. A little different then I expected, but I just tried to land some strikes and posture up and break his grip. So I did what I could and in the second round we got back to our feet and I just tried to put the pressure on him and find that opening to land those punches.

MW: So tell us about your upcoming fight with Martin Kampmann.

MS: Well I’m going to fight Martin Kampmann and I think that’s a good fight and I think the winner of that is going to be next in line for a title shot. So, yah I’m happy with that. We initially called out (Matt) Hughes and we really wanted that fight, but we didn’t get him. So we got Martin Kampmann and we agreed to that and so we’re going to fight I think September 19th in Texas.

MW: So then how has it been physically going down to 170? How do you feel?

MS: I feel great, I feel like this is the right weight class for sure

MW: If you win the fight against Kampmann do you feel like you will be deserving of a title fight?

MS: Yah, I plan to put on a great show and get a dominant victory over Kampmann. So I think a dominant victory over a top ranked fighter is enough for a title shot. That would put me at 10-1 in the UFC and I would definitely feel deserving of it.

MW: How is your training partner Jon Fitch is feeling for his upcoming fight with Paulo Thiago?

MS: Oh he’s looking really good. I think that he’s going to beat up (Paulo) Thiago everywhere. I think that Paulo will be in for a long night.

MW: So being that you and your two training partners, Jon Fitch and Josh Koscheck, are all in the top 10, is there any rivalry between the three of you?

MS: No not at all, there’s no rivalry. It’s cool to have three of the top ten welterweights at the same gym. It’s great that we’re all ranked in the top ten. It could be worse. We could all not be in the top 10 so it’s good to have them as training partners and it just means that we’re doing something right.

MW: What do you do after each fight? Do go anywhere or take a vacation?

MS: Yah I love traveling, I like to travel a lot. That’s a big thing for me, traveling and poker. So I did both after this fight, I hung out in Germany for a bit, and then I went over to Amsterdam for a bit and hung out there. Then I flew home and went straight to Vegas to play poker for a week. I usually play a couple events a year and I try to get my schedule so that I’ll fight maybe in May and then have the whole month to play, but it hasn’t happened yet.

MW: So do you have anything that you want to say to your friends, family, or fans?

MS: Ya I just want to thank the fans for all of there support and to my sponsors. Check out my website at www.mikeswick.com. I’m on twitter, youtube and myspace. Everything is linked up at www.mikeswick.com and I appreciate all of the support.