From UFC's 'Green Mile' to KSW Dominance, Phil De Fries Shows Mental Health Matters

From UFC's 'Green Mile' to KSW Dominance, Phil De Fries Shows Mental Health Matters

Phil De Fries is the world’s most dominant MMA champion today. The KSW heavyweight titleholder looks to extend his reign Saturday as he goes for his 12th straight championship defense when he takes on undefeated Arkadiusz Wrzosek at KSW 107 in Poland. And all of this was made possible by therapy and medication. The same Englishman who couldn’t keep a positive record in the UFC more than a decade ago went on to become a finishing machine, and he’s now proud to look in the rear-view mirror and see the tortuous road he had to navigate. “When I fought in the UFC I was kind of walking the green mile every fight,” De Fries told MMA Fighting. “I was terrified. I thought I’m gonna get beat, and I wasn’t very good because of it, because I always second guessed myself.” De Fries became a professional MMA fighter in 2009 and in less than two years he was called to join the UFC. The 7-0 youngster, then just 25 years old, walked out in front of the Birmingham crowd to win a decision ove…