“It’s hard to double leg a fire hydrant” - UFC vet predicts Bo Nickal might struggle against newcomer Val Woodburn at UFC 290
Bo Nickal is set to step into the octagon against newcomer Val Woodburn at the highly anticipated UFC 290 event on July 8.
Bo Nickal faced initial disappointment when his original opponent, Tresean Gore, had to withdraw from their scheduled bout due to injury. The former NCAA champion eagerly awaited news on a replacement.
🚨🚨Fight Saved🚨🚨
Bo Nickal (4-0) stays on #UFC290. He takes on undefeated late replacement Val Woodburn (7-0) this Saturday in Las Vegas. https://t.co/ByDsra8Lpl
Combat Night MMA middleweight champion Val Woodburn emerged as a courageous fighter willing to accept the formidable task. Woodburn, initially slated to compete on Dana White's Contender Series in August, now finds himself thrust into the spotlight, making his UFC debut earlier than anticipated.
UFC veteran Chris Curtis recently weighed in on the upcoming clash. 'The Action Man' boldly predicted that Nickal might encounter difficulties against his teammate, the debuting Woodburn, and expressed confidence in a tweet that 'The Animal' would be impervious to takedowns:
"Happy for my guy Val. Good friend and teammate. He deserves his shot. It's hard to double leg a fire hydrant, trust me I've tried and Val is coming to scrap."
Check out Curtis' tweet below:
Happy for my guy Val. Good friend and teammate. He deserves his shot. It's hard to double leg a fire hydrant, trust me I've tried and Val is coming to scrap. twitter.com/BigMarcel24/st…
Chris Curtis and Val Woodburn are fellow training partners at the renowned Extreme Couture Gym.
Henry Cejudo believes Bo Nickal might suffer if pressured
Despite Bo Nickal securing a first-round submission victory in his promotional debut, former UFC champion Henry Cejudo remains unconvinced and cautions against rushing the development of the highly regarded middleweight prospect.
'The Messenger' candidly expressed his reservations about Nickal's abilities and potential in a recent YouTube video, casting doubt on the young fighter's readiness for the next level of competition:
"There’s a huge hype train going around with Nickal. Obviously, he did win, but I also saw a little difference in him too because he did struggle to get that takedown. MMA wrestling, it is different than NCAA wrestling. They have to continue to keep building Nickal. If they don’t build Bo Nickal and they give him somebody tough, Nickal is going to struggle."
He added:
"Moving forward, I hope you’re listening: You’re gonna need about six fights like this before you start getting up to like the top 10. I know you have goals of becoming pound-for-pound. Do I believe you can do it? 100 percent. Anybody that is a wrestler that’s a freestyler as high level as yourself can do it. Take your damn time, bro."
Check out Cejudo's comments below (from 8:05):