Penn State wrestling icon [autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag] had as impressive a debut in the world of MMA as he could have asked for. Nickal wasted no time in knocking out his first opponent in an MMA ring, thus living up to the hype the former Division 1 national champion had coming into the world of mixed martial arts. And after his first match, Nickal put the rest of the MMA world on notice with a stern warning.
“Every single middleweight on the planet, I don’t care what organization you’re in, UFC, Bellator, PFL – doesn’t matter, I’m coming for all y’all,” Nickal said during his post-fight interview according to MMA Junkie.
Nickal is one of the best college wrestlers to ever step into the world of MMA, and his debut match showed he was more than ready for the next step in his career with polished striking expected of some of the top fighters in MMA. Nickal’s wrestling intuition wasn’t necessarily needed in his first match, but his skills on the mat have many eager to see what he will bring to the MMA ring as he continues on with his career.
Nickal knows what his role is in the transition from the world of college wrestling to MMA, and it’s not one he is backing away from. In Nickal’s mind, college wrestlers are going to be the future of MMA.
“I’m trying to hold it down for all my wrestlers out there,” Nickal said after his pro debut. “I love y’all, and wrestling’s taking over for sure.”
Nickal isn’t alone in his transition from wrestling for Penn State to MMA, of course. [autotag]Phil Davis[/autotag], a two-time Big Ten champion and a Division 1 silver medalist in 2006 and gold medalist in 2008, has an established fighter since 2009. And the eyes are already on the future of [autotag]Roman Bravo-Young[/autotag], who is coming back to Penn State for another year of wrestling but already has the MMA world thinking about his future in the sport.
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