Bo Nickal reacts after learning Jamie Pickett plans to appeal his UFC 285 loss: “It’s a weird move, bro”

Bo Nickal denies any wrongdoing in his fight with Jamie Pickett at last night’s UFC 285 pay-per-view event in Las Vegas.

Nickal (4-0 MMA) and Pickett (13-9 MMA) kicked off Saturday’s main card lineup at T-Mobile Arena.

The middleweight matchup served as Nickal’s Octagon debut, this after he went 2-0 with two first-round finishes on Dana White’s Contender Series.

The contest opened with Bo throwing a wild head kick that not only missed the mark but resulted in him falling to the canvas. The former three-time NCAA Division I National Champion quickly proceeded to bounce back up to his feet and force a clinch. After pushing ‘The Nightwolf’ against the cage, Bo Nickal appeared to land an accidental knee to the groin of his opponent. Jamie Pickett was clearly seen wincing from the strike, but the referee didn’t notice, and he was dragged down to the Octagon canvas just a second later. Once on the ground, Nickal immediately began working on an arm-triangle choke which he eventually secured to force the tap (see that here).

Immediately following the result, many fans took to Twitter with photos and gifs of the illegal strike.

It looks like there might have been a low blow before the takedown 😅 #UFC285 pic.twitter.com/JbdnvB1jOu

— bjpenndotcom (@bjpenndotcom) March 5, 2023

With video evidence of the foul appearing pretty clearcut, Jamie Pickett and his team announced Saturday that they plan on appealing the loss.

“It’s very important that like all other major sports (including collegiate sports) replays are necessary to manage fair play,” Pickett’s manager said in a written statement obtained by MMAJunkie. “It seems these types of issues from judges and officials are becoming more and more common in MMA. At the end of the day they (officials) are human; however, a fighter who trains his ass off should not be penalized for mistakes by individuals who are paid to make the best judgments for the integrity of the sport.”

Bo Nickal was presented with news of the planned appeal during last night’s post-fight press conference and vehemently denied any wrongdoing.

“I hit him in the leg, in the thigh,” Nickal said. “I had him in a bad position along the wall. He wanted to get off the wall and he wanted the ref to stop it. If I were to have actually hit him low, I would feel bad because I don’t want to win that way. I’m not a cheater. I’m not somebody who tries to take short cuts. If I did hit him low, I would’ve just relaxed probably or let the ref stop it. But I didn’t hit him low at all, so it’s a weird move, bro.”

Do you think Bo Nickal’s first career UFC win should be overturned to a no-contest based on the footage above? Share your thoughts in the comment section Penn Nation!