Bryce Mitchell suffered a swift defeat in his latest grappling outing on September 12 at the Eddie Bravo Invitational 25 in San Antonio, Texas. Less than two months after his UFC bantamweight debut, the Arkansas native—renowned for his grappling skills—was outmatched by 19-year-old BJJ prospect Landon Elmore.
Mitchell advanced to the semifinals after a decision win over JJ Bowers but was quickly submitted by Elmore in under a minute. The fight-ending leg lock came moments after Mitchell carried Elmore out of bounds following a flying triangle choke attempt. Elmore went on to win the tournament, while Mitchell remains focused on competing in grappling outside the UFC Octagon.
Despite the setback, Mitchell is confident about his future in MMA. After exchanging wins and losses since his first professional defeat to Ilia Topuria, Mitchell believes he is the man to challenge bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili. “Nobody’s going to beat Merab unless they call somebody who knows how to,” Mitchell told MMA Junkie. “I’ve got the only resume that can even possibly compete with him.”
Mitchell will likely return his attention to the cage as he continues his pursuit of the bantamweight title, undeterred by his quick loss in the grappling tournament.
