2021 was a welcome return to activity for Davey Grant.
Grant (13-6) has gone through extended layoffs multiple times during his UFC run, which began back in 2013. But last year, he managed to fight three times— and while they didn’t always go his way, the British fighter was happy to stay busy.
“It was great to get the fights in, and it’s about time. Like you say, my career’s been so sporadic, I’ve struggled a lot with injuries and the timing’s just been a bit wrong,” Grant told The Top Turtle Podcast on Cageside Press recently. “And especially when the whole world’s going through a pandemic, and I’m getting jetted off the Vegas and what have you, it was fantastic.”
Going 1-2 on the year, Grant managed to pick up three post-fight bonuses. That extended his bonus streak to four straight fights, and win or lose, he’s enjoying himself. “I just try and just take every experience and just enjoy it. Whether I win or I lose, at least I’m fighting, at least I’m doing what I love. And I’m just going to try my best to get back in the win column for the next one. But it was just great to be active; this is what I’ve always wanted, I’ve always wanted three or four fights a year at the top level. And hopefully we can keep it going.”
Speaking of keeping it going, Grant’s sons are carrying on in the family business. His eldest has begun competing in MMA, putting the UFC bantamweight in an interesting spot.
“Both of my sons fight. The youngest one, he’s only had Thai boxing fights. The oldest one, he’s had Thai boxing and MMA fights,” Grant explained.
His kids are “a chip off the old block,” he continued. But watching them compete isn’t always easy. “It’s a crazy dynamic. Obviously in one sense, you don’t want them to go in there and get hurt. You just want to grab them and cuddle them. And then there’s the coach. I’ve got to be like, telling them to stay calm and let them know what they’ve got to do.”
Being a coach means keeping the game face on. “He can’t see me, he can’t see my being a nervous wreck. That’s not going to help him! How can I expect to go put these guys in a fight if I’m an absolute nervous wreck? So on the outside, I’m probably cool as a cucumber, but on the inside, my stomach is doing absolute back flips.”
Grant returns at UFC Vegas 54 on Saturday, May 14, 2022, where he takes on Louis Smolka.
