UFC featherweight Bryce Mitchell lost his undefeated record against Ilia Topuria at UFC 282. Mitchell vs Topuria opened up the main card, which saw Topuria controlling the action from the starting bell, eventually submitting “Thug Nasty” with an arm triangle. In an interview with ESPN, Mitchell revealed that his financial situation forced him to fight that weekend despite coming down with the flu.
“I was jacked up. That wasn’t me at my best. I had a lot of circumstances going on. People don’t really see all the stuff that the fighter is contemplating before the fight, what the factors are, this and that, and I just don’t think I was at my best.
Bryce Mitchell Explains Why He Fought with The Flu
Honestly, I had a couple thousand bucks in my bank account, and they told me that, ‘If you don’t take this fight, we’re not finding you one until February We’re booked.’
So it’s like, you can live off a couple thousand bucks in your bank, or you can fight December 10, and if not, f*** off until February. So I said, you know what, I don’t want to live off a couple thousand bucks until February, and I would’ve made it. I could have scrapped by and maybe I should have, but at the time, I thought I’d win the fight. I thought I was going in there with the flu to kick somebody’s ass anyway. And that just wasn’t the case. I was not capable of kicking ass that night.”
Mitchell also pointed out that he remains happy with his UFC contract. “I didn’t have to [fight].
I wasn’t dying for the money. I could have made it. I would not have starved to death, and all my bills would have been paid, but then I just kept thinking, ‘What if they tell me a fight in February and it doesn’t happen in February?’ There was uncertainty. I didn’t know what was going to happen if I didn’t take the fight, and in my head I told myself I was going to win anyways.
Here’s the thing with my money: I invest it. I don’t just waste it. I chose to invest it. I knew that I would only have a little bit left and I was expecting that fight to come around — I was expecting to win money too — so I don’t know. I’m not really complaining about the financial side of it. But to say it wasn’t a factor, that would be a lie.
I’m not mad about my financial situation. I’m very happy, very blessed, but I was a little bit worried about not having money until February.”
Should Bryce Mitchell have taken the Topuria fight? Let us know in the comments.
