Bryce Mitchell knows there is no UFC BJJ belt on the line when he faces Mikey Musumeci on September 24.
He just does not seem to care much about that distinction.
In Mitchell’s mind, beating Musumeci means something bigger than walking away with a belt.
“I feel like this really is for the championship.”
Mitchell called it the “people’s championship,” and you can understand where he is coming from. Musumeci has built a reputation as one of the best pure grapplers in the world, and Mitchell sees a win over him as the kind of thing that speaks for itself.
What makes the matchup even more interesting is how it came together.
Mitchell said he made comments on Tim Welch’s podcast about modern sport jiu-jitsu being too focused on leg locks and butt scooting. Musumeci heard it, took it personally, and according to Mitchell, essentially challenged him to a match without relying on those parts of his game.
Mitchell said there was no way he was turning that down.
“Literally, he is taking away his two best weapons, and now he’s gonna challenge me, and I couldn’t turn that down.”
That is also where this matchup gets fun stylistically.
Mitchell is not pretending he is going to out-Mikey Mikey.
His confidence comes from wrestling, pressure, top control and making things uncomfortable.
“I’m really good at what I do, and that’s get on top of people and smash and pass.”
He talked quite a bit about patience too. Mitchell is perfectly comfortable settling into one dominant position and making an opponent carry his weight, even if the action does not look flashy from the outside.
That could make for a really interesting contrast with Musumeci’s more movement-heavy and submission-oriented game.
Mitchell also had a funny answer when we asked him about Musumeci’s habit of standing on one leg and seemingly offering his foot.
He is not buying it.
“I can’t help but to think this is not a coincidence. This is actually a trap.”
And yes, he has apparently thought about what he might do if Mikey keeps hopping toward him like that.
Mitchell joked that if his first ideas do not work, he may eventually just grab the foot and “start throwing him around in a circle.”
There is also a bigger opportunity here.
Mitchell said a win could make him interested in chasing a UFC BJJ title down the road.
“I would love nothing more than to have that belt, because to me, that would mean something.”
So even without a title officially attached to this one, Mitchell clearly sees September 24 as more than just a side project.
It is a chance to test his version of grappling against one of the best specialists in the game.
And if he pulls it off, he already knows what he wants to call himself.
The people’s champ.
Watch the full Jiu-Jitsu Magazine interview with Bryce Mitchell for more on Mikey Musumeci, wrestling, pressure, strategy and what a win could mean for his future in UFC BJJ.