Cub Swanson, who fights Saturday, is pushing to bring UFC to Acrisure Arena before retiring

Cub Swanson will step back into the Octagon on Saturday in Las Vegas for a bout that will help determine how much longer the mixed martial arts veteran will continue his UFC career.

The Coachella Valley native will headline the UFC Fight Night on ESPN+ in the co-main event versus Jonathan Martinez. It will be Swanson’s first time fighting in the 135-pound bantamweight division, after spending his entire career fighting as a featherweight (145 pounds).

Swanson said that he believes he’s as quick as anyone in the bantamweight division, and that he’s a more powerful striker, too. That will be put to the test Saturday.

What makes this fight so important for Swanson, 38, is that it will help him gauge how to proceed with what is surely the final stretch of his fight career. With a convincing win, Swanson could be propelled to a bigger bantamweight bout early next year, and with continued success, he could make his way up the division rankings and perhaps eventually fight for that elusive world title he’s chased.

If that isn’t in the cards for Swanson, he could fight again next spring, then he would like to fight on a UFC card close to home at Acrisure Arena next October, a month before his 40th birthday, in what could potentially be a farewell bout.

“October in Palm Springs is what I’m pushing for,” Swanson said.

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None of that is set in stone, though. Swanson isn’t announcing a retirement and UFC has not committed to hosting a fight card at the new arena that opens in December close to Swanson’s hometown of Cathedral City. But it’s all something Swanson said he’s seriously thinking and talking openly about as he prepares to step into his 31st UFC bout.

“I really don’t see myself fighting too much longer,” Swanson said, “so I feel like this is my last little run. I renegotiated my (UFC) deal after my last fight, so everything is ready for me to win my next however many fights and then be done on my terms.”

Bringing UFC to the valley and fighting in front of his friends, family and supporters in the region would be special to him, he said.

“It would be hard to top that,” Swanson said.

Swanson described fighting at Acrisure Arena in front of his hometown crowd as a “storybook ending,” but he also added that there’s another scenario that could instead lead him to extending his career. That scenario includes him winning Saturday’s fight over Martinez (16-4) convincingly, then going on a three to four fight run in his new division.

Swanson said that if he believed a title fight were within reach, he would “definitely” pursue that and postpone any plans for retirement.

Swanson has continued his fight career despite several other ventures in recent years. He runs a management company called Bloodline Combat Sports Agency that manages MMA fighters, and he helps train fighters as well. He does that on top of his other business ventures, including his co-ownership of the UFC Gym in Costa Mesa.

Some of the other fighters Swanson has trained with, including two-time former bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw, were influential in him making the switch to bantamweight. Some of those training partners had no problem making the 135-pound limit so Swanson decided to give it a try.

Training camp, Swanson said, went well and cutting weight was not a problem.

In Martinez, he’ll get an opponent who knows how to control the fight and is methodical about his approach inside the Octagon. That is a bit different from Swanson’s approach, described as controlled chaos.

The two sides will clash Saturday in a bout that will help decided where Swanson goes heading into the next year.

“I want to have a great fight, a great turnout and then I’m going to push for UFC to come to Palm Springs next October,” Swanson said. “That would be ideal for me and everything I’m trying to do.

“If I go out there and have a great performance and they put me on the microphone, I'm gonna say it and get the crowd behind me. If the crowd wants it, more than likely it’ll happen.”

Andrew John covers sports for The Desert Sun and the USA Today Network. Email him at andrew.john@desertsun.com and find him on Twitter at @Andrew_L_John.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Cub Swanson, who fights Saturday, wants to bring UFC to Palm Springs area