Bo Nickal has taken the MMA world by storm as one of the hottest prospects to enter the UFC in recent memory. Nickal will make his UFC debut Saturday, March 4 against Jamie Pickett on UFC 285. However, prior to his days in the cage, Nickal was a star on the mat for Penn State and an Olympic hopeful in 2021. Check out the below article for a breakdown of Bo Nickal's path from wrestling to MMA.

Bo Nickal's College Career

Bo Nickal was a coveted recruit out of Allen, Texas in 2014, and chose to wrestle for the legendary coach, Cael Sanderson at Penn State University. Nickal was an immediate impact for the Nittany Lions finishing as an NCAA runner-up as a freshman at 174 pounds in 2016. Nickal then went on to win 3 straight NCAA championships and finished his career with a total record of 120-3 while on a 68-match winning streak. On top of the individual success, Penn State won the NCAA team title from 2016-2019, every year Nickal was in the starting lineup.

Nickal's Run At The Olympic Trials

After graduating in 2019, Nickal's focus shifted to making the Olympic Team for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Along with his college accolades, Nickal has impressive international accomplishments as a 2019 U23 World Champion. 

In April of 2021, Nickal reached the finals of the Olympic Trials at 86kg (189.6 pounds) with wins over 2-time NCAA champion Carter Starocci (6-1), NCAA All-American Pat Downey (13-3), and 2-time NCAA champion Zahid Valencia (12-5). However, Nickal came up just short of making the Olympic team, losing in the finals to eventual Olympic gold medalist David Taylor (4-0 and 6-0). Because of his 2019 U23 World Championship and performance at the Olympic Trials, Nickal climbed to the #9 ranked 86kg wrestler in the world.

Nickal's Transition To MMA

Following his runner-up finish at the Olympic Trials, Nickal transitioned immediately to MMA. He fought two amateur bouts at the end of 2021 where he submitted David Conley (on September 24) and knocked out Billy Goode (on November 5) - both of those fights ended in the first round. Nickal then made his professional debut on June 3, 2022, against John Noland. That fight also ended in the first round with a knockout in under a minute. 

Those 3, dominating performances caught the attention of the UFC landing Nickal on Dana White's Contender Series with the opportunity to earn a UFC contract. Nickal's first fight was against Zachary Borrego on August 9, 2022. Nickal won in the first round by submission. After that, he fought on September 27, 2022, against Donovan Beard and again ended the fight by submission in the first round. Following that performance, Dana White awarded Nickal a UFC Contract.

Bo Nickal At UFC 285

Bo Nickal will make his UFC debut against Jamie Pickett in the first fight on the main card of UFC 285. Pickett is a 3-year UFC veteran with a 2-3 record in the UFC, losing his last 2 fights. This is one of the most anticipated UFC cards with former Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones making his Heavyweight debut against Ciryl Gane with the Heavyweight title on the line. Bo Nickal has always relished the spotlight, and Saturday night has the potential to be the brightest moment of Nickal's career.