Kyle Daukaus Says Bo Nickal Picked Him For An Easier Fight At UFC Freedom 250

Kyle Daukaus (17-4, 1 NC MMA) thinks the reason he's fighting Bo Nickal (8-1 MMA) at UFC Freedom 250 on June 14 is simple. Nickal wanted someone he could beat.

"I think Bo was looking for an easier fight and easier match-up," Daukaus said in an interview with Home of Fight's Jake Noecker this week. "I would too if I was in Bo's shoes."

That kind of honesty from a fighter three weeks out from the biggest card of the year is honestly rare. Most guys in Daukaus's position would sell the matchup and talk about what a great opportunity it is. But Daukaus went the other direction entirely.

Daukaus Says He Does Not Deserve the Spot
The UFC pulled Daukaus from a signed fight with Vicente Luque to put him on the Freedom 250 card. He didn't ask for it but he does not think he earned it. And he said so publicly.

"I didn't think I was going to be a guy to be picked, especially when there was going to be seven or eight fights," Daukaus said. "I'm not saying that like I deserve to be on here. I don't believe I do, just based off of the caliber of fighters that are on the card."

That's a wild thing to say out loud when you're about to fight on the South Lawn of the White House with the President watching. But Daukaus is clearly not a guy who cares about selling you something he doesn't believe. He knows why he's there and he's not pretending otherwise.

The Covington Connection
Daukaus also believes the spot on the card was originally meant for Colby Covington. Before Covington retired from MMA earlier this month, there was real back and forth between him and Nickal about fighting at the White House. When the card was announced in March, Covington's name was nowhere on it and Daukaus got the call instead.

"I think it was all noise," Daukaus said about the Covington and Nickal beef. And then he dropped something nobody expected. He said he actually reached out to Covington about walking him out to the cage against Nickal.

"I actually did message Colby, and I was like, 'Yo, dude. What do you think about maybe walking me out to the fight?'" Daukaus said. "Just kinda get the fans liking it, maybe get kinda in Bo's head. He agreed to it, but I was like, maybe I'll just back off of this a little bit."

He ended up backing off the idea. But the fact that Covington said yes tells you something about where things stand between those two camps.

On a Six Fight Streak and Nobody Cares

Here's the thing about Daukaus that gets lost in all the matchmaking talk. The man is on a six fight winning streak. He got cut by the UFC in 2022, went 4-0 on the regional scene, came back, and has two first round finishes in his second run. He is quietly becoming one of the most dangerous middleweights in the promotion right now. But he's fighting on a card with Ilia Topuria, Alex Pereira, Sean O'Malley, and Michael Chandler. Nobody is talking about Kyle Daukaus. He knows that. President Trump is openly rooting for Nickal. Daukaus is not losing sleep over it. That is a man who has absolutely nothing to lose and knows it. Nickal is the prospect, Nickal is the name. He is the one the UFC wants to showcase on the South Lawn and Daukaus is basically saying yeah I know all that and I'm still going to beat him.

"I mean, it is what it is," Daukaus said. "He can have fans. I'll just say sorry that I beat him, but that's about it. I think a good finish would get on my side."