Patchy Mix is heading back to Rizin Fighting Federation.
The former UFC fighter and Bellator champion revealed at a press conference with Rizin on Wednesday that the UFC had released him of his contract roughly five-to-six weeks following his last bout, and that he's moving up to featherweight.
"The main thing was to go up to featherweight," Mix said. "I want to show Patchy 2.0 ... Rizin was a no-brainer, if they gave me a choice, I wanted to come here."
Mix (19-4) re-joins the Japanese promotion after a one-fight stay in 2019 — a submission victory over Yuki Motoya. His move comes after an unsuccessful stint with the UFC, losing both fights by decision.
It was a fairly surprising result given the success that followed the 32-year-old before joining Dana White's roster.
Mix dominated the bantamweight division in Bellator during his time with the promotion, going 8-2 during his tenure while holding the title for just over a year.
He rattled off six-straight victories from May 2021 to November 2023, which included his title-winning bout and a successful defence. His final fight in Bellator was a controversial one against Magomed Magomedov for the belt, as Magomedov was named champion after a positive drug test from Mix resulted in the French MMA Federation overturning the result.
Now, Mix heads back to Rizin up a weight class where he's scheduled to fight Kyoma Akimoto at Rizin 52 on March 7.
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