UFC middleweight Bo Nickal suffered defeat for the first time in his career at UFC Des Moines, but he is grateful for the experience.
The fighter faced off against Reinier de Ridder and took hits and strikes back-to-back in the opening round. He just couldn’t keep up with his opponent and soon suffered a TKO loss in the second round. It was an unexpected loss, given how much hype Nickal had as a prospect, but Nickal says he is already looking at it as a positive for his career.
“It’s been crazy, but I think there’s been a lot of reflection,” Nickal told Ariel Helwani. “Initially, after the fight, obviously, I was very disappointed, very frustrated with myself, and I think that I just am really glad that I have a great foundation of values and things that people have taught me. I don’t really feel that the goal or myself or anything has changed.
“It’s unfortunate to kind of have to experience that, because I hate losing, but even now, having gone through many, many losses in the past and feeling like those were some of the biggest catalyzing moments in my life and my career, I’m already very grateful for it. I think that this is nothing but a learning opportunity and experience that I think will just help me grow and improve and get better.”
Nickal admits he was threatened by de Ridder and trained hard enough for the fight, but in the end, he didn’t have enough skill set to beat the seasoned fighter.
“I felt super confident going into the fight. I think that in my mind, prior to, I did everything that I needed to do to prepare to win the fight,” Nickal said. “I felt great. I think that now, having looked back and gone through that, I wasn’t as prepared as I thought. There were a lot of things that I could have done better prior to, and a lot of things that I could have focused on and done differently.
“I think that it’s tough to be able to predict everything or try to assume what’s going to happen in a fight because I don’t have years and years and years under my belt of reps and feeling different styles. So when I look at that fight, and some of the things that were kind of his biggest positives in the fight on his side, those were things I wasn’t prepared for.”
Nickal went on to admit he was “exposed” by the loss but vowed to grow from the experience. The three-time NCAA Division I champion has no regrets about his loss and is eager to get back into the cage and redeem himself.
“I don’t regret a single thing,” Nickal said. “I believe in myself 100 percent, and I’ll bet on myself every single time. I think that a win or a loss doesn’t define me. I’ve been able to win a lot and lose very few times, and I don’t define myself by the losses, I don’t define myself by the wins. I just have a belief in myself that will never go away, no matter what. Anybody can say whatever they want, and the result can be what it is, but I’m still going to wake up every morning and go after my goals and bring it every single day.
“I want to fight ASAP. Let’s go get back into it.” But I think I’ll talk with the coaches and see what’s best,” Nickal said.
Nickal was viewed as one of the brightest prospects to enter the sport in years when he made the transition to MMA in 2021. Although he has suffered a minor defeat, the fighter assures fans that he will yet again prove himself worthy.
