UFC 133: What Injury Means for Phil Davis Career and Who He Should Fight Next

Phil Davis (9-0) has lived up to his “Mr. Wonderful” nick name thus far in his career.

Thanks to Davis’ slick submissions, wrestling ability, and being the go to guy to take fights on short notice, Davis is becoming one of the best young stars in MMA today.

Although Davis has stepped up for others in the past, he was recently forced out of his UFC 133 bout with Rashad Evans thanks to a knee injury.

The bout with Evans would have been the biggest test for Davis to date. Not only would this fight have been a huge step up in competition for Davis, he would have been fighting in his home state  of Pennsylvania.

While the injury is a setback, more opportunities will be there for Davis.

Davis should have the ability and drive to bounce back from the injury with no problems. He should also have no problem finding his next opponent.

Davis is in the position where he could fight mid level guys or try to test the waters against guys like Rashad Evans.

UFC vets like Stephen Bonner and Vladimir Matyushenko could be guys Davis could take on as all three have recently had to withdraw from fights. Former middleweight champ Rich Franklin is another vet that is currently without a fight.

Ryan Bader could also be another opponent for Davis. Bader, like Davis, was looked at as one of the UFC’s top rising stars.

After going 12-0 however, Bader has dropped two straight to Jon Jones and Tito Ortiz. The latter was one of the most shocking outcomes in MMA history.

If the UFC wants Davis to fight the top guys in the division, taking on the loser of "Shogun" Rua vs. Forrest Griffin or Evans vs. Ortiz would be a good way to see where he stacks up. 

Going through the healing process may be tough for Davis because he’s a young fighter who takes every opportunity he can to fight. But Davis can comeback stronger than ever.