Phil Davis is looking to get back to being the Bellator light heavyweight champion. Thus, when accepting his next fight, that is exactly the goal. It’s just part of the path to achieving that goal.
Since jumping from the UFC to Bellator MMA in 2015, he has fought battle-tested veterans like Muhammed Lawal and Francis Carmont to the younger stars that the Viacom owned promotion has to offer.
Davis is slated to fight knockout artist in Vadim Nemkov in a light heavyweight bout at the Bellator 209 event next month. Since losing the title to Ryan Bader at Bellator 180 last June, he’s scored back-to-back wins over Leonardo Leite and Linton Vassell. This is no doubt a fight that has a lot of risks to go along with it as he’s facing a hungry up-and-comer.
Bellator MMA recently released a video of Davis talking about this fight where he stated that this fight is just another step on the road to the title.
“I want that belt back, and I’m doing everything in my power to get it,” Davis said (H/T to MMAJunkie). “A win over Nemkov, it’s going to be – he’s a tough guy. He’s coming in with a solid win over Liam McGeary, he’s a former light heavyweight champion. He was a terror in his day, for a lot of guys.
“He’s taken on some tough hitters, right away. He’s the next guy in line, and he is young and fresh. You’ve got to beat some of the young lions to maintain your spot in line, and that’s what I’m doing.”
Looking forward to seeing @philmrwonderful and Vadim #Nemkov "kickin' it" at #Bellator209! ? pic.twitter.com/Su323tkVYC
— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) October 21, 2018
Bellator 209 is set to take place on November 15, 2018 at the Menora Mivtachim Arena in Tel Aviv, Israel. The preliminary card will air online at 7:00 pm EST while the main card will air on DAZAN at 9:00 PM EST.
