Done Waiting, Raphael Davis Seizes Opportunity to Headline Titan FC Against Jason Brilz

If there’s a fighter that has seemingly fallen through the cracks of MMA over the last couple of years, it could very well be light heavyweight Raphael “Noodle” Davis.

After going 3-1 in the Bellator promotion in 2010 and 2011, Davis has spent the last couple years fighting only a couple of times, but not because he wanted any layoffs.

As Davis explained to MMAWeekly.com, he was ready to fight, but promotions wouldn’t give him the opportunity.

“Bellator sat on me. World Series of Fighting sat on me. So it was not that I wasn’t looking for fights, I just couldn’t get the companies I was with to put me out there,” he said. “I was forced into that hiatus.

“It worked out all right. Luckily I have the mentality of thinking there’s always something better on the horizon, so I’m always in the gym and I think I’ve made a lot of improvements over time.”

Thankfully for Davis, an injury to Vinny Magalhaes forced him off the April 25 Titan FC card, creating an opening. Davis didn’t hesitate to sign on with a new company even though he had problems with his past two.

“You just have to push it aside,” said Davis. “It’s part of the business. I know things happen. They can use you or then for one reason or another they don’t use you. With WSOF, I had an out clause in my contract and I took it.

“Titan has given me an opportunity, so I’ve just got to take it and go (with it).”

At Titan, Davis will step into the evening’s main event against former UFC light heavyweight Jason Brilz. It’s a match-up that Davis knows exactly what to expect from his opponent.

“He’s gonna throw his hands to get into a takedown or get a clinch against the cage, that’s pretty much his game plan and has done the same thing over the years, and I don’t see him doing anything much different,” said Davis of Brilz. “He’s really good at what he does or else he would have gotten into the UFC and won a few fights.

“I have to see where I can be better than him in the clinch. He’s going to try to turn it into that dirty style of clinching. I have to make sure I can spin him off, create distance and keep him guessing. I just can’t let him lock in on me and push me around and try to wrestle with me.”

After being derailed much of the last couple years, Davis is looking forward to finding a home in Titan and making the kind of run he feels he has to make sooner than later.

“This fight I really wanted because Brilz is a top guy,” said the 37-year-old Davis. “I’m not getting any younger, so taking a fight against a guy who is 5-0 or whatever does me no good. When I saw this opportunity, I really wanted to jump on it.

“I think I can be up there with the top guys again. This whole time I’ve been off has pushed me way down. People think that I’ve just kind of fallen off, so I’m going to use this opportunity to remind people how really good I am.”