Bo Nickal: Mapping Out the Route to Gold

29 year old wrestling phenom, Bo Nickal has taken the UFC by storm. Having had two cracks on the Contender Series, Nickal finally debuted in the UFC back in 2023, notching a first round submission victory in just 2:54, living up to the hype that Dana White gave him.

Since then, he’s picked up several victories, featuring on the historic UFC 300, and most recently picking off veteran Paul Craig via decision. Next up for Nickal is the first-ranked opponent he will face Reinder de Ridder, the former ONE Championship titleholder. He’ll be a tough test for the former Penn State wrestler, however, if we assume he gets through his next fight, which won’t be easy, we map out his route to potential gold.

Bo Nickal: Journey to the Top

Despite having a very tough test on his hands against De Ridder, let’s imagine he gets the victory on May 3rd at UFC on ESPN+ 114. What’s next for Bo Nickal? He’ll be ranked just outside the top 10. So a top 10 opponent will be next.

Bo Nickal vs Jared Cannonier

Cannonier is a former title challenger and unfortunately for the 41 year old has become the gatekeeper to the top 5. He’s still an extremely live dog in the octagon and is 3-2 in his last five, having only lost to Caio Borralho and Nassourdine Imavov recently, two men who are at the top of the division. He holds a win over the former champion, Sean Strickland, and most recently, he defeated Gregory Rodrigues via finish.

Having headlined seven fight night cards, he’s reliable and a known face in the game. He could provide Nickal with a test that he’s never seen before as well as provide him with an opportunity to fight across five rounds for the first time.

Bo Nickal vs Israel Adesanya or Sean Strickland

Let’s say that Bo Nickal gets past Jared Cannonier. There needs to be a big step up in competition and that could come in the form of a former champion.

As things stand, neither Israel Adesanya nor Sean Strickland are in the title picture. Both men have lost to the champion, Dricus du Plessis and neither man deserves the next shot.

We don’t know if Adesanya will even make a UFC return, however, if he does, he’ll be looking to snap a three-fight losing skid. The match-up would promote a good clash of styles with Nickal being a wrestling phenom and Adesanaya being a kickboxing star. It would be fun, it would be a main event and would provide answers to a lot of questions.

Strickland would create a great all-American, patriotic clash. Two ‘propper’ Americans fighting it out. It would allow for a lot of questions to be answered for Nickal. He’d have to fight on the back foot, deal with the jab of Strickland, face a man who will trash talk him and who, despite obvious flaws, give it everything he’s got.

Bo Nickal vs Du Plessis?

If Nickal gets the better of a former champion, be it Adesanya or Stickland, the UFC will certainly push him into a title fight sooner or later. He’s a name. He’s marketable. He’s American and if he gets the wins we predict he will, he’s good.

Dricus du Plessis is unorthodox but certainly effective. There’s a reason that he’s made two defences of his belt and is undefeated in his last 11 fights. A potential fight against Nickal would sell, massively. Why? Because questions would be answered on both sides, which is always a selling point for fans.

Will it be Stillknocks or will it be Khamzat Chimaev who holds the belt? Whoever it is, it is a guaranteed ticket seller and one that will have fans on the edge of their seats.

Are these likely? Maybe. But with a stacked middleweight division where there are a whole host of moving parts, it’s unlikely that these exact fights will ever come to fruition, however, can you just imagine if they did? We’d likely have the next big thing on our hands, going by the name, Bo Nickal.