Andre Fili anticipates war with 'f*cking psychopath' Cub Swanson at UFC 303

LAS VEGAS – Andre Fili doesn’t see how his UFC 303 fight with Cub Swanson doesn’t deliver, and that gets him excited.

Fili (23-11 MMA, 11-10 UFC) meets Swanson (29-13 MMA, 14-9 UFC) on Saturday’s UFC 303 (pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+) prelims at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. When the name Swanson was brought to Fili, he had zero hesitation accepting the fight.

“Immediate yes,” Fili told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a pre-fight news conference Wednesday. “I didn’t ask my coaches. I didn’t talk to anybody. I got a text that said, ‘Do you want to fight Cub Swanson June 29?’ I said, ‘Yes, I do.’

“Like instantly texted back because Cub is a legend, and he’s got a big name in the sport, and I think our styles make a very exciting fight, and I can’t wait to show everybody.”

Swanson has been in his fair share of barnburners – including his win over Dooho Choi at UFC 206, which was inducted into the Fight Wing of the 2022 UFC Hall of Fame.

“Have you ever watched that guy fight? He’s a f*cking psychopath,” Fili said. “You’ve got to fight fire with fire, and that gets me excited. It gets me excited to go in there and bite down on my mouth piece and talk a little sh*t and throw my hands up and get back to that type of fight where you just go get into a fist fight.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 303.