Michael Bisping praises fan for figuring out real reason why Bryce Mitchell’s religiously-motivated interview was cut short at UFC Vegas 79
Bryce Mitchell was able to get back in the win column at UFC Fight Night 228. After suffering the first loss of his professional mixed martial arts career at UFC 282, 'Thug Nasty' bounced back with a unanimous decision victory over Dan Ige.
Following the bout, the No.10-ranked featherweight produced a Bible and attempted to have his opponent lead the audience in prayer after claiming that the Hawaii wildfires were a man-made conspiracy. UFC Hall of Famer and mixed martial arts analyst Michael Bisping pulled the microphone, not allowing the prayer to take place.
Check out the interaction between Bryce Mitchell and Michael Bisping below:
The former middleweight champion took to X(formerly known as Twitter) on Sunday to confirm that the decision to do so was not his. @Willparker_va pointed out that the producers were likely telling Bisping that the show must continue, posting:
"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, confirming that the decision came from above:
"You’re a smart man will."
Check out the fan tweet as well as Michael Bisping's response below:
While Bisping has faced criticism for not allowing Mitchell to pray, the No.10-ranked featherweight had likely used all of his airtime.
Furthermore, although the UFC has generally been considered one of the sports leagues whose athletes are the most vocal and outspoken, fans pointed out that it did not appear as if Ige wanted to lead the prayer session.
Michael Bisping responds to fan upset Bryce Mitchell wasn't allowed to pray
Bryce Mitchell's attempts to have a prayer session following his unanimous decision victory over Dan Ige were not allowed. X(formerly known as Twitter) user @sdorman03 felt, regardless of the time limits, the prayer session should have been allowed, stating:
"I know they have a time thing but to not allow a prayer is ridiculous. Not sure if that was @bisping or producers telling him but that shouldn’t have happened. If he doesn’t want to talk about the fight but Christ they should let him."
Check out the tweet below:
Bisping slickly responded by calling out the commenter:
"Christ? Please don’t take the lord’s name in vain."
Check out Michael Bisping's response below:
While Bisping left the octagon and it was not televised, it does appear that Mitchell and Ige did share a moment of prayer following their bout.
Check out the ranked featherweights praying below: