La Carvas Rashad Davis (born October 28, 1980) is an American

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

who most recently competed in the

Bantamweight Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is . The name for the class is derived from Ba ...

division of

Bellator MMA Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) is an American mixed martial arts promotion (entertainment), promotion founded in 2008 and based in Santa Monica, California, owned and operated as a subsidiary of television and media cong ...

. A professional competitor since 2006, Davis has also formerly competed for the

Quad Cities Silverbacks The Quad Cities Silverbacks was an International Fight League team based in the Quad Cities region of the United States. Coached by former UFC Welterweight Champion and founder of the very successful Miletich Fighting Systems camp, Pat Miletich, ...

in the

IFL IFL may refer to: ;American football *Intense Football League, (2004–2008) in the United States, merged into the Indoor Football League *Indoor Football League, (2008–present) in the United States *Intercontinental Football League, a European l ...

Affliction Entertainment Affliction Entertainment was an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company created by Affliction Clothing in 2008. The UFC prohibited its fighters from wearing Affliction clothing after learning Affliction was applying to become an MMA ...

Titan FC Titan Fighting Championship (Titan FC) is an American mixed martial arts promotion based out of Pompano Beach, Florida. Their shows were originally run in and near Kansas City and have since expanded to include venues all over North America and e ...

, and the WEC.

Background

Born and raised in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

, Davis competed in

high school wrestling Scholastic wrestling, also known in the United States as folkstyle wrestling, is a style of amateur wrestling practiced at the high school and middle school levels in the United States. This wrestling style is essentially collegiate wrestling wi ...

and was talented, going on to continue his wrestling career at

Labette Community College Labette Community College (LCC) is a public community college in Parsons, Kansas, United States. LCC's main campus is situated in Parsons and satellite campuses are located in Cherokee, Oswego and Pittsburg. The mascot of the school is Chris t ...

and

Missouri Valley College Missouri Valley College is a private college that is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and located in Marshall, Missouri. The college was founded in 1889 and supports 40 academic majors and an enrollment close to 1,500 students. Mis ...

. After graduating college, Davis began training in mixed martial arts.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Davis made his MMA debut in 2006, defeating Nick Wright in VFC 12. His professional MMA career has made him retire from a steady job as a wrestling coach at

Pratt Community College Pratt Community College is a public community college in Pratt, Kansas, United States. Athletics The official mascot for Pratt Community College is the Beaver. Pratt CC participates in 11 sports in the NJCAA and in the Kansas Jayhawk Community ...

, moving to the

Quad Cities The Quad Cities is a region of cities (originally four, see History) in the U.S. states of Iowa and Illinois: Davenport and Bettendorf in southeastern Iowa, and Rock Island, Moline and East Moline in northwestern Illinois. These cities are t ...

to train under

Pat Miletich Patrick Jay Miletich (; born March 9, 1966) is a retired American mixed martial artist and former sports commentator. He is known for his fights in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, where he became the first UFC Welterweight Champion and UFC ...

at his Mixed Martial School. He has competed for the Featherweight Grand Prix title, but there he suffered the first loss of his professional career, to

Wagnney Fabiano Wagnney Silva Fabiano-Santos (born July 14, 1975) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. He is best known for fighting in the WEC, as well as for the Toronto Dragons of the International Fight League and is the former IFL Featherweight Champion. ...

. In 2008, Davis was intended to debut in

WEC 35 ''WEC 35: Condit vs. Miura'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting that took place on August 3, 2008 at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Paradise, Nevada. The event drew an estimated 423,000 viewers on Versus. The ev ...

as a replacement to the injured

Cub Swanson Kevin Luke "Cub" Swanson (born November 2, 1983) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Bantamweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2004, Swanson holds the most ...

, who broke his hand at training. He was supposed to fight against

Hiroyuki Takaya Hiroyuki Takaya ( Japanese: 高谷裕之, ''Takaya Hiroyuki'', born June 10, 1977) is a Japanese mixed martial artist currently competing in the Featherweight division. A professional competitor since 2003, Takaya has fought in the WEC, Strikefo ...

, but the fight was cancelled for unspecified reasons.

World Extreme Cagefighting

Davis made his WEC debut against fellow WEC newcomer Javier Vazquez on August 9, 2009 at

WEC 42 ''WEC 42: Torres vs. Bowles'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting on August 9, 2009 at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada Background Kenji Osawa was originally scheduled to face Rani Yahya at this ...

. He won via split decision. He returned to the WEC only four months later, defeating previously unbeaten Diego Nunes via unanimous decision at

WEC 44 ''WEC 44: Brown vs. Aldo'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting. It took place on November 18, 2009 at The Pearl at The Palms in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background Anthony Pettis was originally slated to face Rob McCul ...

. A victory which was also considered a major upset, Nunes was a 3 to 1 favorite coming into the bout. On March 6, 2010, Davis defeated

Deividas Taurosevičius Deividas Taurosevičius (born August 28, 1977) is a Lithuanian retired mixed martial artist who last competed in the Featherweight division. A professional competitor from 2002 until 2013, he competed for the WEC, Bellator, the Cage Fury Fighti ...

via majority decision at

WEC 47 ''WEC 47: Bowles vs. Cruz'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting on March 6, 2010. It was held at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio Background The only WEC event held in Ohio, WEC 47 coincided with the Arnold S ...

, Thus solidifying his name as a top 10 contender in the WEC featherweight division. In his fourth WEC outing, Davis fought top contender

Josh Grispi Josh Richard Grispi (born October 14, 1988) is an American former professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 2006 until 2014, he has competed for the UFC and WEC. Background Grispi, a talented hockey player, was kicked ...

WEC 49 ''WEC 49: Varner vs. Shalorus'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting that took place on June 20, 2010 at Rexall Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Background WEC 49 was the only event the organization had held outsi ...

. In the first round of the fight, Grispi sunk in a deep guillotine choke as Davis was shooting for a takedown. Grispi managed to choke Davis unconscious and was declared the winner via technical submission. Davis looked to bounce back from his previous defeat by taking on

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting (ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

black belt

Raphael Assunção Raphael Oliveira Assunção (born 19 July 1982) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Born in Recife in Northeast Brazil, Assunção moved to Unite ...

. The fight took place on November 11, 2010 at

WEC 52 ''WEC 52: Faber vs. Mizugaki'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting on November 11, 2010 at The Pearl at The Palms in Las Vegas. Background Urijah Faber made his bantamweight debut against Japanese striker Takeya Mi ...

. Davis lost via unanimous decision. For the first time in his WEC career Davis was the favorite coming into the fight. After losing his second straight fight Davis was released from Zuffa following the UFC/WEC merger.

Independent promotions

In September 2008, Davis signed a year-long three-fight non-exclusive contract with

Affliction Affliction or Afflicted may refer to: Books * ''Affliction'' (novel), a 2013 Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter novel by Laurell K. Hamilton * ''Affliction'', a novel by Russell Banks, basis of the 1998 film Film and TV * ''Affliction'' (1997 film), ...

, Davis made his Affliction debut on January 24, 2009 where he defeated journeyman

Bao Quach Bao Quach (born September 4, 1979) is an American featherweight professional mixed martial artist who has fought for Bellator, Affliction, M-1 Global, EliteXC, Strikeforce, World Extreme Cagefighting, King of the Cage, and Shooto promotions ...

by unanimous decision after a back and forth fight. His contract was later terminated after the company closed. Davis has been announced as a participant in

World Victory Road World Victory Road (WVR) is a defunct Japanese mixed martial arts (MMA) organization which promoted the Sengoku Raiden Championship (SRC) in Japan. The organization was formed in 2007 following the purchase of PRIDE FC by Zuffa. It operated in ...

's Featherweight

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

. In the first round of the tournament Davis was upset and thoroughly defeated by

Michihiro Omigawa is a retrired Japanese mixed martial artist, judoka and submission grappler, who mainly competed in the Featherweight division. A professional competitor since 2005, Omigawa competed in the UFC, PRIDE, Cage Rage, World Victory Road, D ...

via unanimous decision. After his release from the WEC, Davis returned home to Kansas City to work on his training where he eventually decided to drop down to the bantamweight division. Davis made his bantamweight debut on May 25, 2012 at Titan Fighting Championships 22 against Bill Kamery. Davis defeated Kamery in the second round via TKO putting him back in the win column for first time in over two years. Davis defeated Jacob Akin on February 22, 2013, at Kansas City Fighting Alliance 5 via TKO due to punches in round one. Davis defeated Dominic Blanco on March 30, 2013, at Victory Fighting Championship 39 via TKO due to a liver kick in round one. Davis defeated James Saville on June 29, 2013, at GWC: The British Invasion via unamious decision.

Bellator MMA

Davis made his debut with

on March 21, 2014 at

Bellator 113 2014 in Bellator MMA was the tenth season for Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion. It began on February 28, 2014 and aired on Spike TV. The season included tournaments for the Heavyweight, Welterweight, Featherweight, Light Heavyweight, ...

. He faced Tory Bogguess and won via guillotine choke submission in the closing seconds of the first round. Davis next faced promotional newcomer Zeilton Rodrigues at

Bellator 124 2014 in Bellator MMA was the tenth season for Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion. It began on February 28, 2014 and aired on Spike TV. The season included tournaments for the Heavyweight, Welterweight, Featherweight, Light Heavyweigh ...

on September 12, 2014. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Davis faced

Hideo Tokoro Hideo Tokoro (born August 22, 1977) is a Japanese mixed martial artist who last competed in the Bantamweight division. A professional competitor since 2000, Tokoro has also formerly competed for Vale Tudo Japan, ZST, Shooto, Rings and K-1 Hero' ...

Bellator 135 2015 in Bellator MMA was the seventh year in the history of Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. Bellator held 16 events in 2015. Background In June 2014, Founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney parted with the company. ...

on March 27, 2015. He won the back-and-forth fight via split decision. He still went on to do the interview after he broke his jaw. Davis faced the former Bellator Bantamweight Champion, Joe Warren in the main event of Bellator 143 on September 25, 2015. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. On February 20, 2018 it was announced that Bellator had released Davis from the promotion.

Personal life

Davis has a son as well as one step-son and one step-daughter with wife Kylie Shepard

Championships and accomplishments

*Victory Fighting Championship **VFC Bantamweight Championship (One time) *

Yahoo! Sports Yahoo! Sports is a sports news website launched by Yahoo! on December 8, 1997. It receives a majority of its information from STATS, Inc. It employs numerous writers, and has team pages for teams in almost every North American major sport. Bef ...

**2015 Best Fight of the Half-Year vs.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 23–8 ,

Marcos Galvão Marcos Galvão (born 23 June 1981) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Featherweight division of the Professional Fighters League. A professional competitor since 2003, Galvão peaked at a global ranking ...

, Decision (split) , Bellator 166 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Thackerville, Oklahoma Thackerville is a town in Love County, Oklahoma. It is located in South Central Oklahoma. The population was 445 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Ardmore, Oklahoma Micropolitan Statistical Area. Geography Thackerville is located at (33. ...

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Plymouth Township, Michigan Plymouth Township, officially the Charter Township of Plymouth, is a charter township in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 27,524 at the 2010 census. The city of Plymouth is surrounded by the township but is administ ...

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Mulvane, Kansas Mulvane is a city in Sedgwick and Sumner counties in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 6,286. History Mulvane was laid out in 1879 at the junction of five Santa Fe rail lines. It is named for ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 20–6 , Ryan Roberts , Decision (split) , Victory Fighting Championship 41 , , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Ralston, Nebraska Ralston is a city in Douglas County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 6,494 at the 2020 census. A suburb of Omaha, Ralston is surrounded on three sides by the city of Omaha by 84th, 72nd, and L Streets, and by Sarpy County (Harrison ...

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Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 18–5 , Jacob Akin , TKO (punches) , Kansas City Fighting Alliance 5 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:18 ,

Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City, abbreviated as "KCK", is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas, and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As of ...

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, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 16–5 ,

Christian Uflacker Christian Uflacker (born August 4, 1985) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner. He holds a black belt under Carlos Gracie Jr. He is currently the head instructor at Uflacker Academy, in Chicago, Illinois. Ac ...

, Decision (split) , Hoosier Fight Club 10 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Valparaiso, Indiana Valparaiso ( ), colloquially Valpo, is a city and the county seat of Porter County, Indiana, United States. The population was 34,151 at the 2020 census. History The site of present-day Valparaiso was included in the purchase of land from the ...

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Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

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, Technical Submission (guillotine choke) ,

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Edmonton, Alberta Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city anchor ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 16–2 ,

, Decision (majority) ,

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Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 15–2 , Diego Nunes , Decision (unanimous) ,

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Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most p ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–1 , Billy Kidd , Submission (bulldog choke) , Adrenaline MMA 2: Miletich vs. Denny , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:52 ,

Moline, Illinois Moline ( ) is a city located in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. With a population of 42,985 in 2020, it is the largest city in Rock Island County. Moline is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring East Moline, Illinois, East M ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–1 , Josh Bernal , TKO (punches) , Conquest FC 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:07 ,

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...

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East Rutherford, New Jersey East Rutherford is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the borough's population was 10,022, reflecting an increase of 1,109 (+12.4%) from the 8,913 counted in the 2010 census.

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Conor Heun Conor Heun (born February 11, 1979) is a retired American mixed martial artist. A professional from 2006 until 2012, he competed for Strikeforce, EliteXC, and the Los Angeles Anacondas of the International Fight League. Mixed martial arts car ...

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Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ; Kansa language, Kansa: ; iow, Dópikˀe, script=Latn or ) is the Capital (political), capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the County seat, seat of Shawnee County, Kansas, Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the ...

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, United States ,

References

External links

* * https://web.archive.org/web/20090108212331/http://www.mmamadness.com/fighter/3945 * Gym Website: https://web.archive.org/web/20111213125703/http://www.highdavismma.com/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Lc Living people American male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists from Kansas Featherweight mixed martial artists Bantamweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing freestyle wrestling 1980 births Sportspeople from Kansas City, Kansas Missouri Valley College alumni

Background

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

World Extreme Cagefighting

Independent promotions

Bellator MMA

Personal life

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts record

See also

References

External links