After a perfect 10-0 run outside the majors, Patrick Mix sounds more than ready for his debut at Bellator 222.
New York, NY — As far as debuts go, Patrick Mix has a big one Friday at Bellator 222. He’ll set foot in the Bellator cage for the first time against Ricky Bandejas, a fellow rising bantamweight who has had some solid outings in Bellator. Including defeating James Gallagher, a fighter Mix wouldn’t mind throwing down with in the near future.
Mix, however, comes in a perfect 10-0 as a pro so far. Hardcore MMA fans know him. Casual fans likely don’t. So as Mix told Cageside Press Wednesday at the Bellator 222 media day, “this is my opportunity to really prove my worth. I’ve beaten a lot of guys, and the hardcore fans know, because I have never lost. I’m on a major streak, years of dedication, and in forty-eight hours, they’re all going to know on Friday night who I am.”
Despite the big debut and win streak, Patrick Mix is a no-pressure sort of guy. “I don’t feel any pressure being undefeated, I feel pressure because I’m a competitor and I like to win. Whether I have a loss, two losses, no matter what, that competitor spirit is always going to be in me, so I think that’s the pressure I feel.”
Ahead of Bellator 222, Mix’s fight with Bandejas was promoted to the main card. “I think it says a lot,” he said of the move. “I’m from New York, and he’s from Jersey, so we have a lot of fans coming out. I know he’s got a lot, and I have a lot of fans coming from my area, the 716 area. So I think that’s why we got bumped up. And our fighting styles, we’re both pressure-based fighters. There’s not going to be a dull moment in the fifteen minutes.”
He wouldn’t expect any less. Mix isn’t looking for easy fights now that he’s in the big leagues. “I don’t want a warm-up fight,” he said. “I’m trying to get after Darrion Caldwell on that stage over there. I’m trying to get after the belt, to get after the big names. [Bandejas] beat James Gallagher, James Gallagher is not the best fighter. He’s not great. If I said how I truly feel, I don’t think I’m going to get my fight against [Gallagher]. So Friday night, I put this kid away, I’m coming for either Darrion Caldwell over there, who ever’s got the belt, or James Gallagher, one of the two.”
Bellator 222 takes place Friday, June 14 at the famed Madison Square Garden in New York, NY.
