Bo Nickal will not abandon his bread and butter on his rise to becoming a UFC champion.
[autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag] says he abandoned his wrestling only for [autotag]Paul Craig[/autotag] at UFC 309.
Nickal received criticism for not resorting to his decorated wrestling background and instead choosing to stand with Craig in their middleweight bout earlier this month. He swept the scorecards to claim a lackluster unanimous decision win, but many pundits and fans weren’t impressed with his performance.
“My goal has always been to be UFC champion, pound-for-pound No. 1 fighter in the world,” Nickal said on the “Pound 4 Pound” podcast with Henry Cejudo and Kamaru Usman. “And so when I call out guys like Khamzat, that’s because I think that he’s really good, and I want to fight the best guys.
“I think that this last fight, even though people didn’t love the performance, was a great step in the right direction. I dominated a veteran, a guy who has 26 fights, for three straight rounds with just using striking. I didn’t even use my biggest asset. I think people now are saying, ‘Oh, Bo, he can’t wrestle’ this or that. Bro, trust me, I can wrestle.”
Nickal assures everyone that he plans on using his wrestling against future opponents. He insists that he implemented the correct game plan against Craig (17-9-1 MMA, 9-9-1 UFC), who finished former UFC champion Jamahal Hill and top contender Magomed Ankalaev off of his back.
“I want to keep dominating,” Nickal said. “I look at my potential for matchups in the future, and with Paul Craig, it’s like his best position’s off his back. So, I didn’t think it was the best situation to put him in his best position, but there’s really no other guys like that.
“So, you can guarantee that every single guy I’m going to be taking them down. There’s a very low chance – I’m not going to say zero because crazy things happen – I could slip on a banana peel or something. Very low chance that they’re taking me down, and if they do I’m getting up guaranteed.”
From one week to three months, check out the full list of medical suspensions handed out following UFC 309 in New York.
Every fighter who competed this past Saturday at UFC 309 has been given a medical suspension following their bouts.
Jhonata Diniz, Mickey Gall and Bassil Hafez were knocked out in their fights and were among four fighters who received 90-day suspensions, which was the longest period issued. The fourth fighter who received 90 days was James Llontop, who went the distance with Mauricio Ruffy, but was on the receiving end of multiple damaging strikes over three rounds.
The event, which took place at Madison Square Garden in New York, was headlined by a heavyweight title fight between Jon Jones and former champion Stipe Miocic. Although he announced his retirement following the main event, Miocic was given a 60-day suspension for his TKO loss to Jones.
Wednesday, MMA Junkie acquired a full list of medical suspensions from the New York State Department of State, which oversaw the event. Check out the full list below. The suspensions ranged from a 7-day mandatory rest period to 90 days. Any fighter given 30-90 days may return sooner if cleared by a doctor (unless noted otherwise).
Eduarda Moura def. Veronica Hardy
Nov 16, 2024; New York, NY, USA; Veronica Hardy (red gloves) fights Eduarda Moura (blue gloves) in the flyweight bout during UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
[autotag]Eduarda Moura[/autotag]: 7 days mandatory rest
[autotag]Veronica Hardy[/autotag]: 7 days mandatory rest
Oban Elliott def. Bassil Hafez
Ò(Editors Note: Graphic Content, Blood)Ó Nov 16, 2024; New York, NY, USA; Bassil Hafez (red gloves) fights Oban Elliott (blue gloves) in the welterweight bout during UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
[autotag]Bassil Hafez[/autotag]: 90-day suspension with neurology clearance
Ramiz Brahimaj def. Mickey Gall
Ramiz Brahimaj def Mickey Gall UFC 309
[autotag]Ramiz Brahimaj[/autotag]: 7 days mandatory rest
[autotag]Mickey Gall[/autotag]: 90-day suspension with neurology clearance
Marcin Tybura def. Jhonata Diniz
Ò(Editors Note: Graphic Content, Blood)Ó Nov 16, 2024; New York, NY, USA; Jhonata Diniz (blue gloves) reacts after losing to Marcin Tybura (red gloves, not pictured) in the Heavyweight bout during UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
[autotag]Marcin Tybura[/autotag]: 7 days mandatory rest
Ò(Editors Note: Graphic Content, Blood)Ó Nov 16, 2024; New York, NY, USA; David Onama (red gloves) fights Roberto Romero (blue gloves) in the lightweight bout during UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Nov 16, 2024; New York, NY, USA; Jonathan Martinez (red gloves) fights Marcus Mcghee (blue gloves) in the bantamweight bout during UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
[autotag]Jonathan Martinez[/autotag]: 7 days mandatory rest
Mauricio Ruffy def. James Llontop
Ò(Editors Note: Graphic Content, Blood)Ó Nov 16, 2024; New York, NY, USA; Mauricio Ruffy (red gloves) fights James Llontop (blue gloves) in the catchweight bout during UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Nov 16, 2024; New York, NY, USA; Viviane Araujo (red gloves) fights Karine Silva (blue gloves) in the WomenÕs Flyweight bout during UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – NOVEMBER 16: (R-L) Bo Nickal of the United States of America punches Paul Craig of Scotland in a middleweight fight during the UFC 309 event at Madison Square Garden on November 16, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
[autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag]: 7 days mandatory rest
[autotag]Paul Craig[/autotag]: 30-day suspension
Charles Oliveira def. Michael Chandler
Nov 16, 2024; New York, NY, USA; Charles Oliveira (red gloves) fights Michael Chandler (blue gloves) in the lightweight bout during UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
UFC Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones (R) fights challenger Stipe Miocic during their heavyweight title bout at Madison Square Garden in New York, on November 16, 2024. (Photo by Kena Betancur / AFP) (Photo by KENA BETANCUR/AFP via Getty Images)
[autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag]: 7 days mandatory rest
Jon Jones’ $42,000 led the Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts for UFC 309 in New York.
NEW YORK – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 309 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $262,500.
The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.
UFC 309 took place at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNews and ESPN+.
The full UFC 309 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:
Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2011 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.
In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.
Full 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:
The fans in attendance at UFC 309 didn’t love it, but Bo Nickal was “fired up” after going the distance for the first time in his career.
[autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag] now knows what it’s like to go the distance in a professional MMA bout and was “fired up” about his performance, although the New York crowd disagreed.
Nickal (7-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) stepped into the cage at UFC 309 inside Madison Square Garden to face the toughest test of his career yet, Paul Craig. The middleweight bout went the distance, and Nickal recorded the first unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) win of his career by shutting out Craig (17-9-1 MMA, 9-9-1 UFC).
With the crowd chanting “U-S-A” to begin the fight, Nickal calmly moved forward, studying Craig’s movement. Leg kicks were Nickal’s first weapon of choice. Craig responded with a solid leg kick of his own, and then searched for a few head and body kicks.
Nickal darted in and out with overhand punches as the opening round continued, looking to land a big haymaker. Craig stayed light on his feet, continuing to offer kicks without setups.
Craig talked and taunted Nickal early in Round 2, but it didn’t cause a deviation in Nickal’s approach. The overhand darts continued from Nickal when he saw the opening, while Craig kept offering single kicks at a time. In the final minute, Nickal connected with a clean left hand upstairs to quiet the few boo birds that began chirping.
In the third, the fighters appeared to be having fun in the cage, even though the crowd wasn’t loving the action. At one point, Nickal completely froze for a few seconds, and then smiled after Craig didn’t react.
Nickal would get back to his offense though, and he cracked Craig with a big overhand left, opening a cut on the right eye. Although Craig appeared rocked, Nickal didn’t hunt too hard for a finish.
While the crowd expressed their displeasure with Nickal’s performance, the standout wrestler, who coincidentally didn’t attempt a single takedown in the fight, said he was “fired up” about the fight.
Nickal, 28, had never reached the scorecards before, and in fact, never saw a third round before UFC 309. He viewed the fight as a learning and growing expereince while remaining undefeated.
Craig, 36, was a solid test for Nickal, but now walks away as a loser of three straight fights.
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Up-to-the-minute UFC 309 results include:
Bo Nickal def. Paul Craig via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Check out the best photos from Bo Nickal’s unanimous decision win over Paul Craig at UFC 309.
Check out the best photos from [autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag]’s unanimous decision win over [autotag]Paul Craig[/autotag] at UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden in New York. (Photos by Brad Penner, Imagn Images; UFC; MMA Junkie)
Analyzing Saturday’s UFC 309 odds between Bo Nickal vs. Paul Craig, with MMA picks and predictions.
[gambcom-standard rankid=”4141″ ]
In a 3-round middleweight bout, Bo Nickal and Paul Craig battle at UFC 309 Saturday at Madison Square Garden on the main card. Let’s analyze FanDuel Sportsbook’s UFC odds around the UFC 309: Nickal vs. Craig odds, and make our expert picks and predictions.
The early prelims begin at 6 p.m. ET on hulu/ESPN+, while the prelims get started at 8 p.m. ET on ESPNews/FX/hulu/ESPN+. The main card begins at 10 p.m. ET on Pay-Per-View (PPV).
Records: Nickal (6-0-0) | Craig (17-8-1)
Nickal has picked up 3 wins in 3 appearances at the UFC level, and he has had finishes in each of the outings. Nickal wasted no time with a first-round submission of Jamie Pickett in his company debut at UFC 285, while making quick work of Val Woodburn in just 38 seconds with a KO/TKO at UFC 290.
Nickal had to go a little deeper against Cody Brundage last time out at UFC 300, but he ended up with the submission win in Round 2, his second victory via the method in 3 UFC battles.
Craig lost via KO/TKO to Caio Borralho last time out at UFC 301, falling in 2 rounds, and he is just 1-4 in the previous 5 fights. His lone win was a KO/TKO is Andre Muniz on July 22, 2023. He has been knocked out twice in the past 5 fights, while losing via submission once, with a unanimous decision setback, too.
The reach length for both fighters is identical at 76 inches. The southpaw Nickal has just 1.64 significant strikes landed per minute, but he is very accurate at 72.94% on those strikes. He also has a ridiculous 7.46 takedown average and submission average. Once you go to the mat with Nickal, it’s not going to end well.
Nickal (-1400) will set you back 14 times your potential return. It’s not wise to bet such a strong favorite straight up. Even if it seems like a sure thing, there is just no value betting such a heavy favorite for such a small return. Even as part of a multi-leg parlay, it makes no sense.
You can make money in this fight by playing a 4-leg Same Game Parlay, however, using these plays:
Nickal by submission: Method of victory (+200)
Nickal: Most significant strikes (-235)
Under: 1.5 total rounds (-180)
No: Will the fight go the distance?
If you bet this 4-LEG SAME-GAME PARLAY (+444), a $10 wager nets a profit of $44.40 with a total payout of $54.40.
If you prefer not to do the SGP above, or are perhaps worried about the potential of a knockout, UNDER 1.5 ROUNDS (-180) is pricey, but still the best play in terms of fight length. You can’t mess with No: Will fight go the distance? (-1100) as that requires risking 11 times the return.
Visit MMA Junkie for more fight news and analysis.
Facing his toughest test to date, will Bo Nickal leave UFC 309 still undefeated after fighting Paul Craig?
[autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag] and [autotag]Paul Craig[/autotag] meet Saturday on the UFC 309 main card at Madison Square Garden in New York. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom.
Last event: 4-1 UFC main cards, 2024: 95-89-3
Bo Nickal vs. Paul Craig UFC 309 preview
After getting a main-card opening spot on the historic UFC 300 card earlier this year, the promotion is back to spotlighting Nickal (6-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC), the former three-time NCAA national champion wrestler, in the featured bout on UFC 309 from Madison Square Garden. Nickal has cruised through his first three UFC fights, most recently submitting Cody Brundage in the second round this past April. … Craig (17-8-1 MMA, 9-8-1 UFC) is looking to play spoiler after losing back-to-back fights against Brendan Allen and most recently Caio Borralho in May at UFC 301.
Bo Nickal vs. Paul Craig UFC 309 expert pick, predictions
The UFC continues to steadily test Nickal by giving him the spoiler machine in Craig.
Not only does Craig somewhat surprisingly have a positive record against southpaws at 4-2, but the Scotsman owns wins over some of the top names at light heavyweight in Magomed Ankalaev and Jamahal Hill.
That said, the strengths of Criag have been known for some time, and fighters are getting better at avoiding it.
Although Nickal is clearly a top-level wrestler who is falling in love with the submission game, the American southpaw has shown to have some striking and power on the feet that are worth respecting.
I would love to be wrong here, but I suspect that Nickal finds a way to produce a stoppage via strikes in Round 2.
Bo Nickal vs. Paul Craig UFC 309 odds
The oddsmakers and the public are heavily favoring the American fighter, listing Nickal (-1700) and Craig (+730) via FanDuel.
Bo Nickal vs. Paul Craig UFC 309 start time, how to watch
As the featured bout, Nickal and Craig are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 11:15 p.m. ET. The fight will stream on ESPN+.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.
Check out these photos from the UFC 309 press conference in New York City.
Check out these photos from the UFC 309 pre-fight press conference in New York, which featured [autotag]Dana White[/autotag], [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag], [autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag], [autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag], [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag], [autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag], and [autotag]Paul Craig[/autotag]. (Photos by Per Haljestam for MMA Junkie)
In addition to main event, UFC 309 press conference faceoffs included Charles Oliveira vs. Michael Chandler and Bo Nickal vs. Paul Craig.
NEW YORK – The stars of UFC 309 main card athletes came face to face for the first time during fight week following Thursday’s pre-fight press conference.
With fight week festivities rolling on, the athletes for the card took the stage to answers questions from the media, then engaged in staredowns ahead of Saturday’s event, which takes place at Madison Square Garden (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPNews, ESPN+).
In addition to the Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic heavyweight championship main event, the anticipated five-round lightweight rematch between [autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag] and [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag], as well as the middleweight main card bout of [autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Paul Craig[/autotag] was also in attendance and participated in faceoffs.
Watch the video above to see the full pre-fight press conference faceoffs ahead of UFC 309.
Bo Nickal is not afraid to test his jiu-jitsu against Paul Craig at Saturday’s UFC 309.
NEW YORK – [autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag] is not afraid to go to the ground with jiu-jitsu specialist [autotag]Paul Craig[/autotag]. At all.
Nickal, a UFC middleweight prospect and decorated collegian wrestler, responded to Craig’s claims that he’s vastly superior to him in the jiu-jistsu department by warning Craig on underestimating that part of his game ahead of their main card bout at Saturday’s UFC 309 in Madison Square Garden.
“The guys that I’m training with and I’m working with in jiu-jitsu are, they’re not good at jiu-jitsu for MMA, they’re the best guys in the world at sport jiu-jitsu,” Nickal said. “I think he’d be surprised at how good my overall submission grappling is. I mean, the first grappling match I ever took was against Gordon Ryan, who’s one of the pound-for-pound No. 1 (grappling) fighters in the world, and he couldn’t submit me for 13 minutes, and that was with three training sessions in that sport. So I think he’d be surprised with my grappling.”
Nickal (6-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC), who many believe is destined to become uFC champion, sees Craig (17-8-1 MMA, 9-8-1 UFC) as the right step in his career. He said that he called for the fight, but that it’s nothing personal. Nickal just thinks it’s a bout that makes sense for him.
“It’s just a step-up in competition,” Nickal said. “For me, who I fight doesn’t matter as much as the way I’m developing and improving in the sport. He’s a guy that’s got a ton of experience. He’s a guy that poses a lot of danger and interesting problems to solve, so it makes sense for my career and where I’m at.
“It’s not personal at all. It’s just another step in the direction I’m headed. I’m excited for it. This is the biggest challenge that I’ve had. I think everybody would agree to that.”
[autotag]Jim Miller[/autotag]: 7 days mandatory rest
