"I was rooting for Dan" - Christian UFC star changes tune on Bryce Mitchell after 'awesome' UFC Vegas 79 antics
Bryce Mitchell suffered the first loss of his professional mixed martial arts career in his last bout at UFC 282. The No.10-ranked featherweight bounced back at UFC Fight Night 228 as he defeated Dan Ige via unanimous decision. 'Thug Nasty' stole the show both before and after the bout as he emphatically produced a bible.
Following his victory, Mitchell took to X (formerly Twitter) with a photo of himself holding the bible and crediting God for the victory, stating:
"All Glory to God!"
Check out Bryce Mitchell's tweet below:
Beneil Dariush shared, that while he was rooting for Ige to win the bout, he was impressed by Mitchell's post-fight actions. The No.4-ranked lightweight quote tweeted the post, adding:
"I was rooting for Dan, but this was awesome. Praise Jesus."
Check out Beneil Dariush's response to Bryce Mitchell below:
Mitchell has been known as one of the most vocal fighters on the UFC roster. While he has voiced his opinions on plenty of matters in the past, often being labeled as a conspiracy theorist, his praise of God appears to have gained him a new fan in Dariush. The No.4-ranked lightweight has been vocal about his faith in Christianity throughout his career.
Michael Bisping weighs in on not allowing Bryce Mitchell to pray following bout
Following his unanimous decision victory over Dan Ige, Bryce Mitchell attempted to have his opponent lead the audience in a prayer session after producing a bible and claiming that the Hawaii wildfires were man-made. UFC Hall of Famer and mixed martial arts analyst Michael Bisping, who was conducting the post-fight interview, did not allow the prayer to take place, pulling the microphone from 'Thug Nasty'.
Check out the interaction between Bryce Mitchell and Michael Bisping below:
The former middleweight champion took to Twitter, revealing that the decision to cut the interview came from above. @Willparker_va pointed out that the producers were likely telling Bisping that the show must continue, tweeting:
"I’d assume @bisping has the producers in his ear piece telling him Bryce’s mic time is over"
Bisping responded with just five words which confirmed that the decision was not made by him:
"You’re a smart man will."
Check out the fan tweet as well as Michael Bisping's response below:
Although Bisping has faced backlash for not allowing the prayer session, it appears that the decision was not his as the show needed to continue. Furthermore, fans pointed out that Ige did not appear fully interested in leading the audience in prayer.