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Notes -
I'm hardly an expert on Russian internal politics, but this seems a case like several in history: Prigozhin likely believes he cannot escape defenestration (on account of previous comments and a lack of clear battlefield utility to the Kremlin) if he yields, so why not take a likely-unsuccessful stand? A Chinese uprising in 209BC occurred when two officers realized that the penalty for arriving late was the same as for rebelling: They were ultimately killed by their own men when their uprising proved a lost cause.
Alternatively, this could be compared to Caesar crossing the Rubicon: a charismatic military commander holding troops' personal loyalty faces a choice between yielding civil government demands to give up his army and riches and taking up arms against it. Caesar was successful despite mixed results in battle, but was ultimately unable to escape assassination at the literal hands of his political opponents.
This is likely closer to the mark than not. To build on this, the Russian MOD had reportedly been trying to compel Wagner forces in Ukraine to sign enlistment contracts, ie. become normal Russian military soldiers and dismantle Wagner's (and thus Prigozhin's) parallel command structure and organizational autonomy.
Basically, Prigozhin ran Wagner as a semi-independent militia, and his hated rival tried to revoke his independence before allegedly bombing him.
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