Bryce Mitchell returned to the octagon with a grinding comeback win against Said Nurmagomedov in his debut at 135lb tonight in Abu Dhabi.
The controversial Arkansas native was brutally man-handled by Jean Silva in their grudge fight at UFC 314, and as a result opted to drop from featherweight to bantamweight. His first test then came against Nurmagomedov, who needed a win after going 1-2 in his last three.
Mitchell looked a different man on the scales as the pair weighed in on Friday, noting in the build-up that he needed to move down from 145lb where he felt he wasn’t strong enough. And he capped off his victory with an impressive Bible verse recollection in his post-fight interview.
In classic Bryce Mitchell form, he garnered loud boos from the UFC Abu Dhabi crowd as he brandished a USA flag, before sprinting to the octagon for his first fight since coming down in weight. His rival had a more balanced walkout, but got a solid reception from the fans in the Etihad Arena.
Despite his famous surname and hailing from Dagestan, Said Nurmagomedov is no relation of Khabib Nurmagomedov or his cousins Usman or Umar. But he was treated like a member of the renowned family by fans in the building.
The biggest shot of the opening minute was a solid hook from the Russian, as both men looked for their opening. Eventually, Mitchell got him down with a body lock, although it didn’t last long as he was well countered.
Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
And Mitchell was dropped with a big knee three minutes into the fight, which Nurmagomedov used to push for a finish. It didn’t land, and the American survived into the second, which ended up ultimately a stalemate almost entirely on the ground.
Mitchell almost immediately got the fight down and locked in a guillotine to start the third, but Nurmagomedov made his way out of it. Unfortunately, the American’s grinding style made for a lacklustre rest of the round, until he got the back late.
The judges ultimately scored the fight 29-28 for Mitchell, who returned to winning ways in his debut at the new weight.
“That was honestly my hardest fight ever, bro,” Mitchell told Michael Bisping after the fight. “I’ve never turned down a fight, I always show up happy to fight.” He then repeated the Bible verse Ephesians 6:12 to a largely Muslim crowd in Abu Dhabi.
Back in April, Mitchell faced a stiff test in Brazilian Jean Silva, and he was brutally beaten up before being ninja choked by the fast-rising ‘Fighting Nerd’. And he noted that he instantly felt when they locked up that he would need to move down in weight.
“I pretty much made up my mind right after this last fight,” Mitchell told Home of Fight after the bout. “The guy was so much bigger than me, and I really felt it in the second round.
“In the first round, obviously I could tell he was bigger and stronger, but it was really in the second round where I felt it. I think that I’m a ’35er. My weight’s already come down quite a bit since I started dieting. I got this call two weeks ago, I think. So, I’m excited about it. Everything’s going good.”
BantamweightBryce MitchellJean SilvaSaid NurmagomedovUFC Abu Dhabi
