Patchy Mix reflects on tough upbringing after Bellator 301 title win: “I come from absolutely nothing, man”

Friday night at Wintrust Arena was Patchy Mix’s crowing achievement.

In what was likely the final Bellator event ever, Patchy Mix, the Bellator interim bantamweight champion, made good on his dream.

Despite being a betting underdog, Mix stifled the attacks of Sergio Pettis and, before long, got the rear naked choke finish less than two minutes into Round 2.

Mix’s road to glory wasn’t easy, though. Despite growing up with aspirations of professional fighting, his background did not afford him the same opportunities as his peers to achieve what he wanted to.

The Bellator victory unified the titles for Mix, but more importantly, closed the chapter on his road to the sport’s top.

Getting to the moment, he says, was bigger than the fight itself.

“I come from absolutely nothing, man,” Patchy Mix said post-fight. “Dirt poor, piss nothing. You know, [when] I was a kid, my mom would be scrounging money and paying with food stamps.”

Mix said it was MMA that saved his life and re-defined his purpose.

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“Bellator changed my life,” Patchy Mix said. “Mike Kogan, Scott Coker, they all gave me an opportunity. I was a young kid chasing a dream that didn’t have anything, you know. I don’t have any brothers or sisters or cousins or anything that really has done much. So, it was just me trying to make way for my brothers and sisters and me trying to make way for my family.”

Mix improved to 20-1 as a professional and wants his story to inspire those who are going through a similar upbringing.

“I just want to be a representative to those kids that watch me,” Mix said. “You know, I’m no different than any of them, so just anybody that, like, really doesn’t come from much.”

Nonetheless, Mix now finds himself as the best Bellator bantamweight in the world amid the uncertain future of the promotion.

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