'You think I'm worried about a limb?': UFC fighter who power-drilled his own scrotum laughs off threat from rival ahead of UFC 249

Unbeaten featherweight Bryce Mitchell, who suffered a horrific injury when he tore his scrotum during a DIY debacle at home, has admitted that the agonizing accident has left him unafraid of rival Charles Rosa's violent promises.

Mitchell mocked Rosa's latest menacing prediction in the escalating feud between the two Americans, responding to his next opponent's "guarantee" that he would have "one of his limbs ripped off" should the pair go to ground in the octagon when they meet at UFC 249.

Recalling the domestic catastrophe that kept him out of the ring for a sustained period and nearly cost him the contents of his crotch in 2018, the winner of last year's Submission of the Year said an amputation held no fears for him after he "nearly died" by falling off a ladder with the exposed power drill down his pants.

"I ripped my nuts in half and almost lost my wiener," retorted Mitchell after reading Rosa's remarks.

"You think I’m worried about a limb?"

'Thug Nasty' spent more than seven months out of action after the drill "went off and tangled my nuts up in it," facing stitches and humiliation in hospital, where some of the staff knew him, as well as a "disgusting" healing process for his bloody injury.

That experience is likely to have made the high-profile postponement of his next fight, which is part of a card that had been due to go ahead with a title fight between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson before being scuppered by issues relating to the Covid-19 pandemic, seem relatively painless.

At the time, Mitchell suggested that people "probably wouldn't ask me about it" had they known "how close I was to dying," but the 25-year-old, who beat Bobby Moffett on his comeback in March last year before a first-round victory over Matt Sayles in December, has recovered enough from the physical and mental scars to use the gruesome mishap as part of the hype for his fight with Rosa.

Rosa hit back at Mitchell's lack of concern. "You should be," he retorted. "But don’t worry, I got your camo sling covered. I’ll bring it to UFC 249 weigh-ins."

Their insults have given extra edge to an encounter that Bostonian Rosa is keen to pitch as one between fighters from distinctly different backgrounds, telling Mitchell, who is from Arkansas, that the fight is a battle between their cities.

Claiming that Mitchell would get his arm "popped," Rosa told MMA Junkie that he was aiming to "take the head off" his "enemy."

When Mitchell accepted his initial challenge on Twitter at the start of February, Rosa wrote: "Ready when you are, country boy.

"Just let your coaches know...and don’t forget your mouthpiece – you’re gonna need it."

He expects his jiu-jitsu skills to make the difference in the fight, promising to entertain fans who are desperate for UFC to return as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to play havoc with the global sporting schedule.

Mitchell, though, has clearly won the latest exchange between the pair ahead of an event that will take place on May 9 behind closed doors at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida.

"Even if you lose the fight, you won with this tweet," one fan told him, while another replied: "You better twist him up worse than that drill did your nuts."