"I'm going to drag him down to the ground and do exactly what he does to these strikers" - Bo Nickal makes bold prediction for potential Khamzat Chimaev fight, says he's a "real grappler"
Bo Nickal believes he's ready to take on Khamzat Chimaev, one of the most feared welterweights in the UFC.
Much has been said about a potential Chimaev vs. Nickal matchup ever since the new UFC signee named 'Borz' as his preferred opponent. Although Nickal is way behind in terms of professional MMA experience, the three-time NCAA Division I wrestling champion is confident he's capable of taking down the welterweight boogeyman.
Not only does Nickal think he's ready for Chimaev, but he also thinks he'll beat the Chechen-born Swede at his own game. Appearing as a guest on The MMA Hour, Nickal provided a bold prediction:
"I think I can win [in] a lot of ways. He's [Khamzat Chimaev] at 170. Like, yeah he's a '70 [pounder] that can't make weight. What's he gonna do to me? Is he gonna take me down? No. Is he gonna submit me? No. Does he have a chance to knock me out? I mean, I guess, yeah."
The way Nickal sees it, his wrestling skills are superior to Chimaev's. With that in mind, the Dana White's Contender Series alum added:
"There's a chance to knock me out, but in reality, more than likely what will happen is I'm gonna drag him down to the ground, do exactly what he does to all these strikers, and I'm gonna do it to him because I'm a real grappler. I come from real wrestling."
Watch Bo Nickal's interview below:
Bo Nickal buries Khamzat Chimaev for lack of professionalism and accountability
It's no surprise that Bo Nickal isn't a fan of Khamzat Chimaev's antics.
In the lead-up to UFC 279, Chimaev marred his reputation by being involved in multiple incidents. First, Chimaev had a heated run-in with Paulo Costa at the UFC Performance Institute. He was then involved in a huge backstage brawl with Kevin Holland and Nate Diaz that resulted in the cancelation of the UFC 279 press conference.
However, the worst part of it all was when Chimaev missed the contracted weight by an astounding 7.5 pounds, causing a major reshuffling of the fight card. He was also unapologetic about his mistake, which rubbed many, including Nickal, the wrong way. On The MMA Hour, Nickal added:
"First off, this dude [Khamzat Chimaev] talks about [how] he’s ready to go always, he’s a gangster, this and that. Bro, you can’t even beat the scale. Like, what’re you doing? This is just a dude that has no accountability and who doesn’t treat the sport professionally. That makes me way less nervous to fight him in the future because we’re gonna fight and I know that he’s not committed like I am. He’s not willing to do the things that I’m willing to do."
Check out the quote below: