Bryce Mitchell says recurring disk injury forced him out of UFC 288
Bryce Mitchell says he would have been far from 100 percent if he competed at UFC 288.
Mitchell (15-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) was scheduled to face Movsar Evloev on Saturday’s main card at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., but withdrew due to a back injury. He was a replaced by newcomer Diego Lopes, who’s stepping in on five days’ notice.
Mitchell says a disk injury caused him to have limited mobility, making it difficult for him to fight.
“What happened is, I tore out my back,” Mitchell said on Instagram. “It’s a reoccurring (sic) injury. Basically, I have a disk problem where my neck flares up, the nerve in my back locks up. My whole back is as stiff as a board and it takes days where I can do anything, even touch my toes.”
Check out Mitchell’s full statement below:
“I’m gunna come back healthier and it shouldn’t take too long. I wanna thank the UFC for bein very understanding and hopefully the fans aint too mad either. cant wait to put on a show for yall.”
“Thug Nasty” was looking to rebound from his first loss, a second-round submission defeat to Ilia Topuria at UFC 282 in December. Prior to that, Mitchell scored a lopsided unanimous decision win over Edson Barboza at UFC 272.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 288.
Bryce Mitchell says recurring disk injury forced him out of UFC 288