With the win, Swanson moves to 23-7 Kawajiri falls to 35-10-2. As the bout went to the ground once more, Kawajiri worked for a leg before Swanson maneuvered and finished with a flourish, locking up the hard-fought win. With two minutes left, Swanson escaped and began tagging his opponent once more, with a knee to the body being particularly effective. Yet while he got upright, Kawajiri stayed locked on and scored another takedown. After a brief break, the fight continued, with Swanson landing several hard shots down the stretch.Īfter a strong start to the third, Swanson got grounded by Kawajiri in the second minute, but Swanson didn’t stay there long. While standing, Swanson began tagging Kawajiri with punches, but after pushing him to the mat, he landed a knee to the head of the downed Ibaraki native. “The Crusher” got the bout back to the mat in the second minute of round two, but Swanson reversed position on the way down and nearly submitted Kawajiri with a rear naked choke before the two rose again. In between, Swanson’s striking was on target, as he rattled Kawajiri on a couple occasions, but whether it was enough to win the round was open to debate.

Kawajiri did solid work throughout the first round, particularly as the bout began and as the round ended, first with a varied striking attack and then with good groundwork after taking his foe down at the midway point. Scores were 30-27 twice and 29-28 for the No. 14-ranked Tatsuya Kawajiri in UFC Fight Night prelim action at Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. Cub Swanson continued to impress on his way back into the featherweight title picture on Saturday, winning a three-round unanimous decision over No.

Sherman 2 attack of the tagger