Bo Nickal’s UFC debut in December against Jamie Pickett scrapped due to injury

Fans will have to wait to see Bo Nickal make his UFC debut just a little bit longer.

‘The Allen Assassin’ is widely regarded as one of the greatest prospects in MMA. Nickal is a former Dan Hodge trophy winner and is a former multiple-time NCAA Division 1 National Champion in amateur wrestling.

After spending years dominating the wrestling scene, the Florida native decided to make the jump to MMA in 2019. After spending nearly three years preparing, he made his debut in June 2022, quickly knocking out John Noland.

That victory was enough to score the wrestling champion a shot in the Contender Series. Nickal quickly defeated Zachary Borrego by submission in August, which wasn’t enough to get him a UFC contract. Afterward, Dana White decided to wait, and bring the prospect back for one more fight.

Well, the gamble paid off, as Bo Nickal easily dominated and submitted Donovan Beard in round one. Following the win, he got his UFC contract and surprisingly called for a fight with Khamzat Chimaev.

The promotion seemed less enthusiastic about that matchup, and subsequently set the wrestler’s UFC debut for December. Standing opposite Nickal at UFC 282 was supposed to be the veteran Jamie Pickett. However, that fight will no longer happen.

MMA Junkie was the first to report that Bo Nickal is out of UFC 282. The report states that the wrestler was dealing with a minor injury, and the fight has now been pulled off the card. As of now, it’s not known if Jamie Pickett will remain on the card.

When Will Bo Nickal debut?

According to the report from MMA Junkie, It appears the prospect will instead make his debut at UFC 285 on March 4th. As of now, no opponent has been set for Nickal’s promotion debut.

While it’s unfortunate to lose the middleweight clash, UFC 282 is not hurting for talent. The card is expected to be headlined by the light-heavyweight title rematch between Jiri Prochazka and Glover Teixeira.

Other key matchups for the pay-per-view event include Jan Blachowicz vs. Magomed Ankalev and Robbie Lawler vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio.

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