Rising star Bo Nickal promises tough night at the office for Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya once he ‘gets a hold of them’
Bo Nickal continues to grab headlines as he takes aim at the UFC roster, this time setting his sights on Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira, two middleweights he believes he'd have an easy time with if he managed to get a hold of them.
The NCAA Division I wrestler is yet to make his UFC debut and still has an incredible amount of hype surrounding his career in the sport. At 27 years old, the grappler has a chance to back up all the talk when he makes his first foray into the octagon at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on March 4.
While discussing potential matchups with Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira, Bo Nickal boldly claimed that it wouldn't go well for either of the popular athletes if they ever met inside the cage, saying:
"I'm not gonna say it's an easy fight because he's [Pereira's] dangerous but as far as styles go, that's a great matchup for me. I've watched their fight [Adesanya vs. Pereira] a couple of times and the striking exchanges are super impressive, that goes without saying. They're absolutely elite strikers, but when they get a hold of each other, it's almost funny, I'm laughing at how they're moving and what they're doing and stuff... I just feel like if I grabbed a hold of either of those guys, it wouldn't go well for them. I think everybody knows that."
Nickal had the chance to showcase how well-versed he was during his two fights on Dana White's Contender Series last year. Two huge first-round submissions and glimpses of his power were on display, rightfully earning him a UFC contract.
Awesome to hear the confidence of @NoBickal when talking about how he matches up with the current UFC MW Champ, Pereira. The UFC’s MW division is definitely striking heavy, it will make it interesting to add an extremely high level wrestler into the mix #theMMAhour @arielhelwani https://t.co/jCjSscbCdb
Israel Adesanya's redemption fight against Alex Pereira
Despite losing each of his three combat sports fights against Alex Pereira, former middleweight king Israel Adesanya has the chance to silence his critics and gain bragging rights on April 8.
'The Last Stylebender' has proven himself to be able to hang with the Brazilian and has on each occasion posed a serious threat during their bouts, hurting his opponent multiple times.
Although he has fallen short at the final hurdle every time, Adesanya can now recapture gold and finally get his hand raised against Pereira in a blockbuster 185lb clash at UFC 287.