Phil Davis"When it comes to athleticism, he's like a bigger version of GSP (Georges St. Pierre, UFC welterweight champion and world-renowned fighter)," said Joe Rogan, UFC color commentator.
High praise for a man who has only two fights in the UFC.
The 25-year-old Davis is scheduled to fight Rodney Wallace on Saturday at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. He took the fight on two week's notice. Most fighters prefer eight-week training camps before stepping into the Octagon. So why did Davis take the fight?
"The UFC likes guys who step up," said Davis. "I am one of those guys. The UFC respects guys who fight last minute."
Phil Davis (Photo/Danielle Hobeika)After training under Lloyd Irvin, Davis won a gold medal at the No Gi World Jiu-Jitsu Championships on November 7. But it's an accomplishment Davis would rather not focus on.
"I don't consider myself a World champion," said Davis. "There were a lot of slick guys that weren't in the tournament."
Nonetheless, after four wins in smaller MMA venues with wins coming by decision, TKO (twice) and submission, Davis got his break when he was placed on the UFC 109 card against Brian Stann in February.
Davis dominated Stann in the fight. He was close to getting a submission several times throughout the fight, but settled for a unanimous decision. Yearning to finish a fight and learn from his first fight, Davis fought Alexander Gustafsson two months later in Abu Dhabi at UFC 112.
Davis dominated again, earning the aforementioned praise from Joe Rogan and finishing the fight before the first round ended with a D'Arce choke.
Phil Davis"People tell me that there is hype, but I don't read that stuff," said Davis. "I'm not on the Net feeding it or my ego."
As a former NCAA Division I wrestling champion, Davis has been successful incorporating his wrestling into his MMA game, but it hasn't been as seamless as one would think.
Davis missed a few takedown attempts in each of his first two UFC fights. He addressed it in his post-fight interview, calling it "not acceptable."
His coach, Lloyd Irvin, shared a story about Davis' early MMA days.
"I let him wrestle with Brandon Vera a while," said Irvin. "Vera, a former wrestler with the Air Force Academy, struggled to stay with him. Davis was all over him. In the next session, I put him with Vera again, but this time in a cage. I saw his eyes open up. It's a different ballgame and he was trying to adapt on the fly."
Davis further explains the difference.
"I don't mean to sound cliché, but it's so different wrestling in a cage opposed to a mat," said Davis. "In wrestling, most of those takedowns, I'm going to complete them. In the Octagon, they can use the cage to stop my leverage and suddenly stop my momentum."
The difference from the cage to the mat notwithstanding, Davis also has a much different mentally in MMA than in wrestling.
"When I was wrestling, I was really confident," said Davis. "I knew that nine out of 10 times, I was going to thrash my opponent. In MMA it can get a little frustrating. I'm trying to be patient and stay humble. I was a winner in wrestling. At times in MMA, I'm like, 'I'm really bad at this.'"
Davis, who signed a four-fight deal is on the cusp of winning his third fight, earning more respect from the promotion for taking it on short notice, and could be in line for a pay raise after his current contract is up. While some feel that MMA is hurting Olympic wrestlers, Davis is an advocate for a wrestler doing what he or she needs to do.
Phil Davis (Photo/Sherdog.com)"The top guy in our country isn't getting paid what you can make in MMA unless he wins the gold medal. (Davis' former wrestling teammate with the Angry Fish Wrestling Club, Jake Herbert, won a World silver medal in 2009 and earned $25,000.) You have to be the best in the world. All wrestlers should take whatever opportunity they can to provide for their families. There are too many good guys."
When asked if a professional wrestling league could co-exist following the MMA model, Davis makes a valid point.
"The market is almost too saturated now," said Davis. "People want to see wrestlers wrestle and punch guys in the face. It's too closely related now. It's too bad. The opportunity is past now."
Humble, shy, a team player ... Hardly a formula for the nickname "Mr. Wonderful." He is a few wins from earning big pay day, higher rankings, and about all things a top prospect is going to be rewarded. So how did he get a self-righteous nickname?
Phil DavisNow training with the American Kickboxing Academy in California, Phil Davis is the future of the UFC light-heavyweight division, along with former wrestlers Ryan Bader and Jon Jones. All former All-American wrestlers. All undefeated in MMA. And all on the rise to MMA stardom.
UFC President Dana White recently told Takedown Wrestling Media's Scott Casber, "One of the things you absolutely, positively better have is wrestling to be a well-rounded fighter in MMA. It's the future."
Davis' response to hearing this:
"Well, I don't want to be arrogant and say he's totally correct. I am a former wrestler, so I will leave it at this ... He is the boss, so what he says is correct," Davis said chuckling.
Laughing matter or not, wrestlers are the future of MMA, and Davis is just one shining example.
For all the latest news on Phil Davis, follow him on Twitter or visit his blog.
For all things MMA, follow Tony Nguyen on Twitter.
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