LAS VEGAS – Bryce Mitchell knows he needs to prove himself in the cage Saturday at UFC Fight Night 228 in order for it to be true, but he thinks his potential drawing power as it stands is untapped.

Ahead of his bout vs. Dan Ige (17-6 MMA, 9-5 UFC) at the UFC Apex, Mitchell (15-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) thinks his star potential is flying under the radar. There’s money to be made, Mitchell said, as he declared himself the biggest pay-per-view draw in the UFC featherweight division.

“I don’t think I’ll have to call out no names,” Mitchell told MMA Junkie and other reporters during a pre-fight news conference Wednesday. “I think there’s going to be a realization that I’m the cash cow. Eventually, somebody is going to realize they’re sitting on gold. They think I’m fools’ gold. I’m not. I’m real gold. They’re sitting on gold. They need to cash me out. I am in the cash cow. They’re ain’t another pay-per-view draw like me in this division. I am the cash cow. It’s time to cash me out.

“I’m ready. I’m begging them. Please, please, give me a big fight. I’m begging them. I’m waiting. But obviously, I don’t deserve none of that if I can’t beat Dan Ige. That’s going to be a hell of a competition between me and Ige. But if I beat Ige, who’s to say I don’t deserve a top-five, a top-three, a top-two. Like I said, I’m the cash cow. They’re going to realize that. Once they do, they’re going to love me even more.”

While Mitchell has formulated both fans and detractors during his UFC tenure, if the mission has been to make himself stick out, he has been successful. From being the first fighter to rock a special camouflage fight kit inside the cage to projecting flat earth theories to accidentally drilling his scrotum with a power tool, Mitchell has felt comfortable being unapologetically himself during his time in the public spotlight.

“That’s what it’s all about,” Mitchell said. “It’s being yourself in here. That’s what people love. I’m just glad for the opportunity to infuse my personality into what I’m doing. I have no problem fighting, but my favorite part is just getting to say what I want, do what I want, live the free life that I live. That’s what I love about this. The UFC, it gives me freedom. I’m in here fighting for my freedom.

“You can’t be on no NFL team talking how I talk. You can’t be on no NBA team talking how I talk. UFC gives me freedom to be who I want to be. That’s what I love. That’s why I go in there ready to die. I can’t have no other job that gives me this freedom. That’s what I love, brother. I’m free.”

Mitchell, 28, looks to bounce back from his first professional loss, a submission defeat vs. Ilia Topuria in December. Since that appearance, Mitchell has had multiple fights fall through.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 228.