Patchy Mix

Patrick "Patchy" Mix (born August 16, 1993) is an American professional mixed martial artist.

He currently competes in the Bantamweight division of Bellator MMA, where he is the current Bellator Bantamweight Champion.

As of December 8, 2023, he is #6 in the Bellator men's pound-for-pound rankings.

Mix was born in Angola, New York, a small village approximately 20 miles outside of Buffalo.

Mix was born prematurely before his due date at just 1lb 8oz (680g).

Growing up, Mix was a lot smaller than other kids his age, Mix's household, consisting of his mom and three siblings, also did not have much money.

As Mix described his childhood, “We didn't really have a lot growing up, my mom had food stamps and stuff, I just remember various ways to get money.

I'd sell my school lunch to get a dollar, I'd go and beat up another kid in an arranged fight for 20 bucks.

I'd play football for 20 bucks.

Then I'd go and buy bread, eggs and milk and stuff.

We just had to find a way."

Mix began wrestling in the eighth grade, joining the Lake Shore High School wrestling team.

With only 2 years of wrestling experience under his belt, Mix became a state qualifier in his weight class in the tenth grade, and in the process became the first wrestler from Lake Shore High to make the state tournament in over 40 years.

Mix graduated from Lake Shore Senior High School in 2011, and his senior quote was "Luck is when preparation meets opportunity. Six minutes on the mat is all that matters."

Making his pro debut in May 2016, Mix began regularly fighting for the King of the Cage promotion.

Mix went undefeated in the promotion, going 9–0 and he became KOTC Bantamweight champion after defeating future UFC bantamweight Andre Ewell by submission.

After having championship success in King of the Cage, Mix was signed by Bellator MMA.

He made his promotional debut on June 14, 2019 at Bellator 222, facing highly touted prospect Ricky Bandejas.

Mix was victorious rather quickly, showing a superior ground game and submitting Bandejas with a rear-naked choke just 66 seconds into the first round.

Mix was next scheduled to face Dominic Mazzotta on October 26, 2019 at Bellator 232.

However, Mazzotta withdrew from the bout and was replaced by Isaiah Chapman.

Mix once again showed dominance on the ground, submitting Chapman with a Suloev stretch kneebar in the first round.

For Mix's next bout, he fought in the Rizin Fighting Federation, representing Bellator in a card that featured RIZIN fighters against Bellator fighters.

He took on Yuki Motoya at RIZIN 20 on December 31, 2019.

He was victorious via first round submission.

Subsequently, Mix signed his second multi-fight contract with Bellator.

After racking up three straight first round victories as part of the Bellator promotion, Mix was linked to a fight against Juan Archuleta for the vacant Bellator MMA Bantamweight World Championship at Bellator 242.

However, Archuleta tested positive for COVID-19 and the bout was delayed.

The bout was rebooked and took place at Bellator 246 on September 12, 2020.

Mix lost the bout via unanimous decision, thus facing defeat for the first time in either his amateur or professional MMA career.

Mix was expected to face James Gallagher at Bellator 258 on May 7, 2021.

However, Gallagher withdrew from the bout.

UFC alum Albert Morales was announced as a replacement.

Mix won the bout via arm-triangle choke in the third round.

The bout against James Gallagher was rescheduled for Bellator 270 on November 5, 2021.

At the weigh-ins, Mix missed weight for his bout, weighing in at 137.8 pounds, 1.7 pounds over the bantamweight non-title fight limit.

The bout proceeded at catchweight and Mix was fined a percentage of his purse which went to Gallagher.

Mix won the fight via guillotine choke submission in the third round.

In the first round bout of the $1 million Bellator Bantamweight World Grand Prix Tournament, Mix faced Kyoji Horiguchi on April 23, 2022 at Bellator 279.

He won the bout via unanimous decision and moved on to the next round.