Phil Davis wins, but he's still not Mr. Wonderful
Posted on March 27, 2011, 12:56 PM by Anton GurevichLast night, UFC hot prospect Phil "Mr. Wonderful" Davis continued his winning ways inside the Octagon, defeating Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at the main event of Fight Night 24. Davis improved his professional MMA record to 9-0, in what was without a doubt his toughest test so far.
Before we get into in-depth discussion of Davis' performance, it's really important to determine by which criteria we judge his talent. Because if we compare him to the likes of Rampage Jackson, Lyoto Machida, Rashad Evans, Matt Hamill and Thiago Silva, yesterday's performance definitely proved Mr. Wonderful is still not there.
Despite the result, Phil Davis' performance inside the Octagon left a lot to be desired. During the first part of the fight, Davis struggled to display a wide array of Mixed Martial Arts qualities, so necessary for his success in the UFC Light Heavyweight division. Surprisingly gun-shy Rogerio Nogueira controlled the action, defending all four of Phil Davis' takedown attempts in Round 1. The Brazilian was en route to giving Phil Davis the most valuable lesson of his young career.
Yes, it's silly to dismiss Davis' huge potential as a Mixed Martial Artist. He showed a sign of pure excellence in how he adapted to the fight at the end of Round 2. The transition to a single leg takedown was brilliant, and really helped Davis to gain momentum and walk away with a prestigious victory.
But then again, it's the takedowns that awarded Mr. Wonderful his victory. Davis looked uncomfortable on his feet, lacking the quality striking we usually see from the top tier UFC Light Heavyweights.
UFC Fight Night 24 main event told a lot about Nogueira rather than about Phil Davis. Brazilian's counterpunching gameplan cost him a victory, as well as his inability to effectively fight off his back. On paper, Little Nog had all the required tools to win this fight.
Phil Davis performed above my personal expectations, but he still needs at least two or three skill-sharpening fights before we lock him inside the cage against anyone of the UFC's Light Heavyweight elite. Stephan Bonnar is a perfect candidate for a fight against Davis, and could really push the young gun up to his limits.
Photo: Yahoo! Cagewriter
Comments
I like Bonnar vs anyone you cant finish him, and he never quits
i agree man! even jon jones couldnt do it.
if this kid davis just needs a little bet done on his boxing skills and than like too see him get a title shot .
I agree.
After watching what Jones did to Shogun and other opponents--Bonnar should hold his head high.
The Jon Jones of today would shiit on the Jon Jones of yesterday. If you look at all the opponents he fought in the UFC, he's has gotten better in each one. He smashed Hammil to near critical condition, more than he did an unknown Andre Gusmao. He whipped Shogun Rua to the point of quitting (if you watched the end, it clearly shows Rua tapping) more than he did in a decision win over Stephan Bonnar. I love Bonnar's "never quit" attitude but he wouldn't stand a chance with Jones right now. Am I right or wrong? Please don't weak me, you'll hurt my feeling.
P.S. Shogun Rua will be back 10x better the next time, I still think only him and the karate guy have a chance against Jones. Oh and i forgot to mention that other skinny black guy from the MW division. dueces
i like bonnar too but the jones that fought shogun and the jones that fought bonnar were completely different fighter. hes evolved into a great champion but he had flaws in the bonnar fight. that jones wouldnt have beaten shogun
He has a LONG way to go...cause as soon as they put him in there with a top striker he's getting knocked out..his stand-up is terrible!!!
He has a LONG beard
I agree Bonnar is extremely hard to finish but Davis won't try to stand and finish him, simply outwrestle him. I see Bonnar as a step back in competition for Davis as I can't see Bonnar stopping his takedowns nor posing any real threat of his back. I don't think he would learn much from this fight as opposed to a a fighter who will actually challenge him such as Gustafsson or even Bader...
His striking looked like he had no idea what he was doing out there, he threw kicks with his toes out, tried a flying knee and extended his leg half way out in midair, when he threw power punches he touched his knee to the ground twice in a row as if off balance. He won last night off his few takedowns and Lil Nog's terrible gameplan and fight. all he showed me last night is he's as bad as I thought on his feet and not as good as I thought with his wrestling. he's in serious trouble if he ever fights a top 15 opponent who's not past his prime. this article is great because he said 2 or 3 skill sharpening fights before he goes in with a top LHW where other people r still saying 2 or 3 fights and he'll be ready for Jones. I've read many comments on here where people are WAY overhyping him.
We can look at it like "Davis doesnt have such good TDs after all" or " Lil nog got outwresltled by Bader and probably worked his ass off on his wrestling and showed improvement" Lil nog is harder to take down than Rua i'm sure now.
Anyway Davis has some work but we all knew that, he could face JJ but in 2013 imo.
I agree with the latter statement... Nog isn't one for head games, he's a straight shooter. So when he said before the fight that he had been working diligently on his wrestling and was showing great improvement, I believed him. However, as I thought, its not a gap that u can close that quickly. With that said, he sure did cover a lot of ground. Its impressive to see Nog come along so well in such a short period of time.
I think Davis would beat Bonnar if they fought because Davis would simply out wrestle him.
I'd like to see Davis / Bonnar, that could be a good test too.
Davis to me is far from one of the elite in the Light Heavyweight division, his flaws we out there for the world to see last night.
However I believe he does have the tools to become one of the sport's greats. He mainly needs to work on his stand up a hell of a lot more, so he doesn't completely rely on his wrestling.
Phil has potential to be great, but right now he needs to brush up on his skills. A top contender would destroy him the way he fought last night.
What about Anderson Silva? See anyone beating him anytime soon?
Aldo.
lol but hes a midget
The clock is ticking for Phil Davis.
He has a little over 1 year to drastically improve his striking game if he wants to keep rising in the division. With each win he will get higher calibre opponents--so he does not have time to waste in upgrading his skills.
I am pretty sure that he agrees with ur statement. He said many time prior and following the match that this fight came much sooner than he wanted to return to the octagon. He feels like he is already much less experience than many and by fighting so many times in his first year with the UFC, he is only falling further behind. I personally admire that attitude. He is honest with himself and others about his ability. Hopefully he gets some time to expand and grow as a fighter before we see him again.
nog>bonnar seems like a backwards step, griffin/bader seem more on the level he'll be looking for to keep slowly moving through the ladder
are people talking about same bonnar who was outwrestled by senior citizen Coleman
Davis was kind of impressive, and Lil' Nog not so much. Either way Davis would get destroyed by Jones from what I saw.
People may recall that Bonner is a former Golden gloves boxer and as such is a huge mistake for Davis and his camp to attempt at this time. His utter inability to defend stikes or especially throw punches with any proficiency exposed a huge hole in his game. I would take Bonner as the underdog all the way to the bank in that fight. Lets hope Phil has some good peole in his camp to save him from some embarrasment and a beating by attempting to Face Stephan Bonner at this stage.
I'd like to see Davis against Randy Couture to see what he's wrestling can do against The Naturals.
It sucks because Lil Nog seems to be going into every fight with solely a counter punch strategy.. pretty one dimensional, its only a matter of time before he gets taken down and pounded out in every match...
He definitely did not look good standing. His kicks were not bad but his hands were horrible, and after each power shot he threw himself off balance. I'm very surprised that lil Nog was so timid in that fight.