In the week leading up to UFC 172 and his bout with Anthony Johnson, Phil Davis seemed to be selling a potential title fight with Jon Jones.
Sure seemed like it this week RT @RuairiMcVeigh1 you think he looked past rumble?
— Jonathan Snowden (@mmaencyclopedia) April 27, 2014
Whether Davis was looking past Johnson or not, his verbal sparring with Jones proved untimely. Following his performance on Saturday, Mr. Wonderful likely won't be fighting for the title in 2014 and will need to get hot quickly to even line himself up for a championship bout in 2015.
Johnson, on the other hand, could be on his way to a shot at the 205-pound strap. "Rumble" came into UFC 172 an underdog, but he shut down Davis and beat up the NCAA wrestling champion by keeping the fight standing.
Davis attempted eight takedowns against Johnson and scored zero. When Rumble wasn't sprawling to deny Davis' takedowns, he was meeting his opponent with well-timed uppercuts.
Anthony Johnson defeats Phil Davis via unanimous decision! pic.twitter.com/zKUkdzyzav
— Bleacher Report MMA (@BR_MMA) April 27, 2014
The bout marked Johnson's return to the Octagon. Following UFC 142, where he missed weight and was beaten by Vitor Belfort, Rumble was released from the UFC roster. However, he earned his way back to the world's top MMA promotion with six straight wins.
Now competing at 205 pounds, the former welterweight looks to have found a home that will allow him to reach his full potential. Based on his outing at UFC 172, Johnson's ceiling appears to be extremely high.
Heading into the weekend, Davis was among the Top Five light heavyweights in the official UFC rankings. With such a clear win over Davis, Johnson could possibly already be looking at a title-shot eliminator in his next outing.
For Davis, it will be back to the drawing board.
