Phil Davis discusses COVID-19’s impact, eager to get back in the Bellator cage

Coming off of two straight wins in 2019, former Bellator light-heavyweight champion Phil Davis was looking to build of his success and have an even more advantageous time in 2020.

In the wake of the novel coronavirus putting everything on hold, while understandably disappointed he’s not able to fight, Davis prefers to be patient during lockdown.

“I already was rocking and rolling and preparing for a big year, preparing to get back to the title,” Davis told MMAWeekly.com. “2019 was alright, but I wanted to make 2020 a year that I remember… I definitely will (just not for the reasons I was anticipating).

“I’ve kind of been in the same place. This is where we are. Just be patient. Obviously, I want to be out there fighting and entertaining, but not at the expense of my health or the health of the unknown people that I could infect.”

In addition to runs and some isolated gym work, Davis has spent the majority of his lockdown with his children and getting to reconnect with them.

“Really just being able to spend time with my kids is a blessing, even more so than I realized,” said Davis. “I’m kind of jealous of their teachers because they get to spend eight hours of their waking life getting to know my little people, sometimes better than I do.

“To be able to spend this time teaching and investing in them, and going back over the morals and values we live by, means a lot.”

While Davis may not be able to fight in lockdown, fans can still see him fight on CBS Sports Network’s “Bellator MMA: Recharged” series. For Davis, his 2015 debut with the promotion is a night he feels fans should check out.

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“Scott Coker and the rest of the team work hard and I think they’re also very smart and are great at getting the level of exposure that our fighters and sport deserves,” Davis said. “It’s great to be able to get support. To be able to get on CBS Sports Net is exciting.

“(Bellator 142) was a great night to be able to introduce myself to the Bellator fans. It was a great night to be able to fight in a tournament, two times in one night. That hadn’t been popular since PRIDE. It was a great night for me, and the rest of the card was spectacular as well.”

When Davis is able to return to fighting, he has both the short term and long term on his mind.

“I definitely want to get that first one out of there and get back in that cage, but then after that I want to get back into that cage as soon as possible,” said Davis.

“This year started off as a doozy for everyone. I want to look back and say that 2020 was so tough and there was so much uncertainty, and I want to look back and say it’s one of those times that I’ll never forget, but it worked out and I’m so thankful.”