The X Factor: Assuming Swanson can get Aldo down before losing his grip on consciousness, one has to wonder exactly what he will do to a guy who comes from the grappling-centric Nova Uniao camp. Black belts do not come for free from that team, and Swanson is hardly an irresistible force on the mat. It will take a lot more than a takedown and some luck for Swanson to keep himself from becoming the next in a long line of scalps for Aldo.
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The Bottom Line: There’s a reason why Aldo’s career has taken off and Swanson has been left to toil in the mid-level of the WEC lightweight division. Simply put, Aldo is a far superior fighter. That truth will shine through, as Swanson ends up in the worst spot of all -- on the end of Aldo’s piston-like punches. Sooner or later, one of those blows will put Swanson out like a bottle of Ambien and a DVD of “Meet the Spartans.”