UFC featherweight Bryce Mitchell issued an unprompted challenge to tech billionaire Elon Musk during a recent episode of his podcast ArkanSanity, calling him out by name and saying he would compete against him regardless of weight class.
The comments came during a news discussion about the Pentagon signing deals with multiple tech firms to deploy AI on classified systems. The segment also referenced a company that had refused to allow its AI to be used for mass surveillance or autonomous weapons.
That discussion led Mitchell into a critique of artificial intelligence and the figures he believes are driving its development, eventually bringing him to Musk.
As the conversation shifted toward Musk, Mitchell didn’t hold back.
He said: “Elon Musk is of the devil. He’s a child of the devil. And he can’t beat me in a fist fi ght. He’s got a lot more money. But I guarantee I beat the h*ll out of him. Guarantee you. And I’ll fight his fat a*s at any weight, too. So, I don’t care what weight class Elon Musk wants to compete, I’ll fig ht him and his robots.”
Mitchell’s criticism of Musk extended beyond the podcast appearance as well. In a separate conversation during a fishing trip with MMA content creator The Guru, he doubled down on similar claims, arguing that Musk’s work and influence were fundamentally harmful.
“Everything he touches in life are in some way evil. He can’t produce good. His heart’s too evil,” Mitchell said.
He also rejected Musk’s achievements in aerospace and technology, specifically questioning SpaceX and the broader space industry.
“I mean, everything you go to space agency, that’s a fraud. It’s fake. He can’t go through the firmament with the earth, you know,” he said.
Mitchell further criticized Musk’s consumer products, including Tesla vehicles, claiming they fail to meet expectations.
“His cars, they’re terrible cars. Everybody buys them saying, ‘Hey, I wish I didn’t buy this car.’ Well, I could have told you that because he can’t make something good like that,” he said.
For context, Mitchell competes at 145 lbs (65.7 kg) in the UFC featherweight division and is an active, ranked mixed martial artist. Musk, by comparison, is 6 feet 2 inches tall and has no professional combat sports background, though he has publicly discussed recreational physical training.
