Bryce Mitchell explains why he'll never bring out the Bible to his fights again
UFC featherweight contender Bryce Mitchell stands out as one of the most eccentric figures on the UFC roster. His beliefs, ranging from an unabashed adherence to flat-earth theory to a range of captivating, if not somewhat skeptical stories, elicit mixed and polarized reactions.
In the lead-up to his co-main event bout at UFC Vegas 79 against Dan Ige, Bryce Mitchell garnered substantial attention for his candid conversation with Michael Bisping and Anthony Smith on subjects like evolution and gravity.
Not only did Bryce Mitchell maintain his resolute stance within the octagon, but he also amplified it. During the pre-fight octagon introduction, he displayed the Bible, and after the fight, he engaged in a prayer with his opponent, Dan Ige, underscoring the depth of his convictions.
However, Bryce Mitchell recently claimed that he will never bring out the Bible to his fights again. Speaking in a recent interview with Middle Easy, Mitchell stated:
"I've got a bunch of positive feedback and I'm really happy about it. For future warning, I will not bring the Bible into the octagon again. The Holy Spirit compelled me to do that in that fight. I felt like I was called to do it... I probably won't be walking out with the octagon again."
Mitchell added:
"Because it would be unnecessary to do it again. I don't know. I made it very clear where I stand. I stand with Jesus Christ. I just wanted it to be known. The mission was accomplished and now I'm onto greater missions. Things I do are more important than that symbolic gesture. How I live my life is more symbolic of my relationship with Jesus."
Catch Bryce Mitchell's comments below (4:20):
Bryce Mitchell predicts Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Volkanovski 2
UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski will replace Charles Oliveira and face Islam Makhachev in a rematch from their UFC 284 bout.
Volkanovski is determined to avenge the only UFC loss on his record as he prepares for his second encounter with Makhachev this weekend, vying for the lightweight championship in the main event of UFC 294. The featherweight champion accepted the challenge with under two weeks' notice, motivated to avenge the narrow decision loss he suffered at UFC 284 in February.
In the aforementioned interview, Bryce Mitchell predicted the outcome of the bout, stating (8:20 for comments):
"I think the short training camp might get a little bit harder on Volkanovski. But I also thought he won the first fight and if he can make small adjustments, he'll really win the second fight even better. It was close either way."