Bo Nickal is gearing up for his highly anticipated debut in the UFC middleweight division.
The buzz surrounding his transition to MMA has been building since he was signed to the UFC promotion after just his third professional outing on The Dana White Contender Series.
With a reputation as a top wrestler, fans are eager to see how Nickal’s skills will translate to the octagon.
To showcase his abilities, Nickal has partnered with Jake Paul to give fans an inside look into his journey. This is an interesting move considering how critical Jake Paul has been of UFC and their compensation model.
Additionally, UFC’s Kevin Holland recently blasted Logan Paul over the compensation Prime offered UFC athletes after closing monster deal with the UFC.
Jake Paul, a part-owner of the betting and media company Betr, has been working hard to establish his own presence in the MMA industry. Betr is a platform that aims to provide sports fans with better content. Paul hosts a show on this platform, and he and Nickal plan to work together to give fans a glimpse into Nickal’s journey leading up to his debut.
Nickal previously clashed with Jake Paul online, after Paul issued a public challenge.
Immediately after signing with the UFC, Nickal started to make bold statements. He claimed to be the best wrestler in the division and even targeted former champion Israel Adesanya. However, looking back, he acknowledges that some of his comments may have been taken the wrong way. In a recent interview on The MMA Hour, Nickal spoke about how he wants to clarify his intentions and show people the real him.
Nickal’s first UFC outing will be against Jamie Pickett, and it will be featured on the pay-per-view portion of the massive UFC 285 event. The main event of the evening will be the return of Jon Jones, who will face former heavyweight interim champion Ciryl Gane.
Bo Nickal had a storied wrestling career and is one of the biggest US prospects to sign with the UFC in recent years. UFC notably missed out on Gable Steveson over their tight string purses – Stevenson wound up going into the WWE after a 2020 Gold Olympic medal in freestyle wrestling at 125kg.