LEWISTON — Marcus Davis wrestled the full range of emotions after his abbreviated Bellator MMA debut Thursday night against Waachiim Spiritwolf.

He fought back tears at the post-fight press conference when recalling the reaction as he was introduced to the home-state crowd that ate up his every move, even as he paced the canvas and egged them on a bit during an unpopular medical delay.

“I absolutely love this state and I love the people from here. This is a really big deal for me,” said Davis, a native of Houlton in Aroostook County. “To get the welcoming that I got tonight was overwhelming. I was swept away. I’ve never heard a crowd like that in this state, not for anything, and it moved me.”

Earlier, Davis had a more mischievous gleam in his eye. He admitted to wrestling with the “old Marcus” and the “new Marcus” when summoning words about his fallen foe.

Their bout was declared a no-contest when Spiritwolf was unable to continue five minutes after a knee from Davis landed near his groin area. The move was judged accidental. Where, specifically, it landed was a matter of dispute.

“The old Marcus Davis who was mean and nasty and in the pursuit, the one who went to Maine Youth Center, he would (say something mean), but now I’m not that guy,” Davis said. “I’m a father of four, a church-going guy, and I don’t want to be the bad guy … There was no way he was going to finish that fight, so he took the easy way out by claiming foul when there was no foul.”

Known for his background as a boxer — he had 20 pro fights in the sport before transitioning to MMA — Davis believes that his kicking ability and strength surprised Spiritwolf and caused him to panic.

Literally, even. Davis claimed that he spoke with the physician who attended to Spiritwolf, was told that the doctor verified no contact to the groin and diagnosed Spiritwolf with an anxiety attack.

“He was not going to touch me. Even him getting my neck for a quick second and thinking he was going to be stronger than me, my old man strength kicked in,” Davis said. “He knew it was going to be really, really hard and he took the easy way out. There was nothing he was going to do.”

Neither Davis nor his captive audience will need to wait long for a reunion.

Thursday’s night was only Davis’ second ever in Maine. His third will take place here on May 18, against Darrius Heyliger in the main event of the next New England Fights card.

“In less than two months I’m going to be back here and I’m going to be fighting a kid who’s going to be game, going to be hungry, and it’s going to be a whole different stylistic fight,” Davis said. “He’s somebody that’s much taller than I am. He’s a good wrestler and he’s a good kickboxer too. He’s going to come to win.”

In the summer, Davis is scheduled to be part of a team of U.S. fighters against a roster from the United Kingdom at a pay-per-view event in Kansas City.

Translation: Don’t expect Davis to tap out against Father Time at any point in the near future.

“This is my home state, and they got robbed from being able to see a great show, and I got robbed from having another win on my record. It’s not about that really for me right now. It is about me being able to compete. I’m going to be 40 this year. I want to compete and have as many great fights as I can on my way out. I got robbed of that tonight,” Davis said. “I have never been as a healthy since 2008 as I am right now. I am through the roof right now. I’m reinvigorated. I’m like Marcus 3.0. I’m hoping to keep going.”

GAMACHE GETS ANOTHER GIG

Terry Gamache of Lewiston said she has been offered work at the Bellator MMA show in Atlantic City, N.J., on April 4.

Gamache became only the second woman ever to work as a second for Bellator — working on cuts and wrapping fighters’ hands — in the cage on Thursday night.

While the rash of first-round stoppages limited Gamache’s work in the spotlight, she did play a significant role in extending one of the two fights that made it beyond a second bell. Gamache slowed a nasty gash on the forehead of Gardiner’s John Raio, allowing Raio to reach the third round against Vince Murdock.

“I got the bleeding slowed down,” she said. “I loved working on John’s cut.”

koakes@sunjournal.com

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