Kyler Phillips: ‘I Just Felt Like I Was at Home’
Kyler Phillips entered the Octagon for his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut at UFC Fight Night 169 on Feb. 29 in Norfolk, Virginia. The experience can bring with it an inordinate amount of tension, but comfort was never an issue for the 24-year-old Dana White’s Contender Series graduate; and it showed in his performance, as Phillips took a unanimous decision from Gabriel Silva.
“I just felt like I was at home,” Phillips told Sherdog.com, “especially when I walked in the cage. I’ve got my song on and I was just swagging, and I just yelled like a lion. Even when they were chanting ‘USA’ I’m like, ‘Well, that guy’s Brazilian, so it must be [for] me, right?’ That felt good. [It was about] having a good time and being loose. I tell myself [to] keep those inspiring thoughts in your head. We do this because we love it; and fear-based thoughts, maybe they will go and start to trickle into your head, but if you put thoughts of inspiration and love in your head, that trumps all that. Everyone is going to get nervous, for sure, but just take a breath and [think], ‘I’m here. This is awesome.’”
In this exclusive interview, Phillips discusses his first win in the UFC and whether or not he can fill the hair void left by the departure of Elias Theodorou.
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