The 135-pound showdown is a monumental step up in competition for Luna.
In his last fight, “Border Boy” fought Angel Pacheco — who is 0-2 in UFC — after earning a contract on Contender Series because of an exciting loss. Now, Luna takes on Mitchell, who has battled nothing but elite competition (like this) for the last six years.
Still, Luna isn’t all that impressed with “Thug Nasty,” who is competing at Bantamweight for the second time.
“You know, I’ve seen Said Nurmagomedov, the last guy that Bryce fought, and I’ve never seen anything impressive with him,” Luna said during UFC Vegas 118 media day (watch that here). “I did think Bryce was going to put a beating on him, but he didn’t. So, that tells you a lot.
“Every time Bryce has gone against a good guy — a guy that can defend against his takedowns a little bit — he’s come to not do nothing,” Lunda added. “He’s lost. There isn’t going to be an exception on that side.”
Luna is referencing Mitchell’s losses to Jean Silva and Ilia Topuria (watch highlights), fights in which the Arkansas native could not consistently get his grappling going and ended up getting finished.
“Border Boy” believes it’s going to be more of the same this weekend in “Sin City.”
“Other than the pressure for one round that Bryce has with his wrestling — even having that, he’s not going to take me down,” Luna said. “I believe my defense will be on point, and that is where my game plan is going to go, as in myself taking him down, and I’m super excited for that.
“I’m going to take him down anytime I want,” Luna concluded. “I’m going to be able to strike with him anytime I want, and the finish is going to come.”
Luna is undefeated (8-0) with seven finishes, including four first round stoppages. And while Mitchell is by far the biggest name and toughest test of his career, the 21-year-old prospect clearly does not sound overwhelmed by the moment.
Now, he gets the chance to prove it against one of the most experienced grapplers in the division.
