During a Tuesday Fighters Training session, David took a couple of heavy knocks to the knees. The first impact was to the right knee, landing on the inner (medial) side. Fortunately, this didn’t cause too much concern and he was still able to move fairly comfortably. The second impact was more significant.

While checking a leg kick with his left leg, David took the full force of the kick directly to the front of the knee. The impact landed on the kneecap (patella), and the leg immediately gave way beneath him. After sitting down briefly, he tried to stand up again — but the knee was clearly not happy.

David has had sore knees on and off before, and the previous day’s wrestling session had already caused a bit of a flare-up. After the kick, things escalated. He was able to continue through some drills, but sparring was off the table. The knee felt unstable, and he developed a noticeable limp.

With the MRI results in hand, David had an important decision to make. He has a strong competition history and was preparing to start a six-week fight camp next week, leading up to the Rumble at the Ridge event on March 14. For many fighters, the instinct would be to push through.

But David made the smarter call.

Instead of rushing into fight camp and risking turning a manageable injury into a long-term problem, he decided not to engage in the upcoming camp. His priority is allowing the knee to settle and recover properly so he can return to training strong and compete later in the year. This kind of decision shows real maturity as an athlete.