Bo Nickal recently suffered the first defeat of his professional career in his fight against Reinier de Ridder. His head coach, Mike Brown, believes he understands exactly what contributed to the outcome.
Nickal, a highly touted wrestling prospect and three-time NCAA Division I National Champion from Penn State, entered MMA with significant hype, achieving a perfect 7-0 record including six finishes. However, his undefeated streak ended abruptly at UFC Des Moines. De Ridder established control on the ground in the first round and then delivered a fight-ending body shot in the second.
Mike Brown, the head coach at American Top Team who has been cornering Nickal since the start, addressed the loss, acknowledging that multiple factors led to the surprising defeat.
Brown reflected on the situation via Instagram:
“Was a tough weekend but maybe one that was needed. Things have been moving fast for Bo Nickal and to this point he was been able to make things happen and secure six finishes and seven victories with the limited experience that he has. Bo has all the attributes that you want if your goal is to become a world champion in mixed martial arts. He has athleticism, a strong confident mind set, a great family support system, and he started combat sports (specifically wrestling) at a very young age. These are all the boxes that you want to check when developing an elite MMA fighter.”
Brown then pinpointed a key area where Nickal is still developing:
“But the one thing Bo doesn’t have is live fighting cage time and for this there is no substitution. MMA fight experience is crucial and actual time in the cage is extremely important. As a team we had our concerns about moving so fast and we realize the dangers of fighting such high level opponents so early, but Bo is a unique athlete and the UFC has him on a fast track.”
Nickal was a significant favorite leading into the fight, despite facing de Ridder, a fighter with considerably more professional experience and a strong record, having previously been a two-division champion in ONE Championship.
From the outset, de Ridder aggressively pursued Nickal across the octagon, consistently landing strikes, particularly to the body, especially during clinch exchanges. These repeated body blows proved highly effective. De Ridder capitalized on an opening, unleashing a powerful knee strike up the middle that landed cleanly, sending Nickal to the canvas and concluding the fight.
Brown commented specifically on Nickal`s performance against the veteran opponent:
“This past weekend Bo’s lack of experience showed, his wrestling and athleticism wasn’t enough to overcome what was in front of him. Reinier de Ridder now 20-2 was a multi-time two division world champion in One FC a very reputable organization. Props to him for coming with a strong game plan and executing what was needed.”
Unsurprisingly, following his first loss, Nickal, the 29-year-old middleweight, immediately faced a barrage of criticism, with some suggesting he was “fraud checked” after the one-sided defeat.
Brown quickly pushed back against this criticism, offering a subtle reminder that Nickal is still very early in his mixed martial arts journey and that this setback can serve as a crucial learning experience for his future development.
While losing is never the desired outcome, Brown, drawing from his extensive background as both a fighter and now a top coach, understands that facing and overcoming defeat is essential for a fighter like Nickal to prove his resilience.
Brown concluded his statement by emphasizing the nature of the sport and offering perspective on the criticism:
“This is the fight game and it’s cliche but this is where we learn. This is where we make changes and where we make the biggest gains. I’m confident that this is going to fuel Bo and it will help him direct his focus to another level. To all the critics dog piling, remember Bo is nothing more than a man in an arena trying to support himself and his family.”
