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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Illness and injury kept Mike Swick out of action for over two and a half years, but he made a successful return to the Octagon on Saturday night at UFC on Fox 4. In a mostly fun and exciting back and forth bout, Swick knocked out DaMarques Johnson in the second round.
Johnson actually had the edge in the first round, surviving a few big combinations from Swick in the opening frame and scoring a couple of takedowns. He landed several big strikes on the ground, and had dominant position for a significant time. He even had a submission attempt, but it wasn't quite close enough to be locked on.
The second round saw Johnson continue leaving himself open for counter strikes, and when he threw his first kick of the bout, Swick was ready to take advantage of the mistake. He sent Johnson to his back after catching the kick, and landed a knockout blow as he dove into Johnson's guard. He connected on two more punches that were unneeded, but it marked his first win since June of 2009, and the emotion had him in the moment.
The win was not only the first since being kept out of action by a number of issues, it also snapped a two-fight losing streak. His last win had come against current Bellator welterweight Ben Saunders at UFC 99.
The loss for Johnson was his second straight, and fourth in his last six fights, but the entertaining nature of the bout will likely keep his spot on the roster.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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