Bo Nickal wasn’t blissful about Daniel Cormier’s commentary throughout his scrap with Paul Craig at UFC 309 in New York Metropolis.
Nickal returned to the Octagon for a primary card conflict with ‘Bearjew’ inside Madison Sq. Backyard, and whereas he secured his sixth straight win in MMA, it was a efficiency that left plenty of pundits underwhelmed.
As a substitute of using the world-class wrestling that made him a three-time NCAA Division I nationwide champion, Nickal opted to face and commerce with Craig, eeking out a reasonably uneventful unanimous resolution. In the course of the three-round affair, followers contained in the world’s most well-known area lambasted the previous Nittany Lion, calling him overrated and showering him with boos.
Cormier was additionally vital on commentary, noting that Nickal had a protracted approach to go earlier than he’d be prepared for somebody like Khamzat Chimaev — a fighter Nickal has referred to as out since his days on Dana White’s Contender Collection.
Nickal voiced his frustration over Cormier’s pro-Khamzat commentary which sparked a response from the UFC Corridor of Famer.
“Bo Nickal is a bit upset concerning the commentary throughout the combat final week,” Cormier mentioned on his YouTube channel. “I’ve obtained to be trustworthy, this one took me a bit of bit abruptly, as a result of I do like Bo, and I do consider that sooner or later he’s going to be a champion. Bo mentioned he took offense to the commentary, however I feel he’s a bit of misguided. I feel he might have misunderstood what I’m making an attempt to say.”
“What I’m extra making an attempt to say on this combat is let’s not rush him into fights with individuals which might be way more skilled, way more battle-tested, way more able to compete on the highest degree,” Cormier continued. “As a result of it looks like a type of conditions the place a younger man who has proven a lot promise will get a bit of bit fast-tracked. We have now seen this time and time once more, the place an athlete comes onto the scene, they accomplish that effectively initially that they get overwhelmed since you don’t know what to do with him.”
Cormier went on to make clear his stance on a possible showdown between Nickal and Chimaev sooner or later, noting that his criticism doesn’t imply Nickal received’t ever be able to combat ‘Borz.’ He simply isn’t prepared proper now.
“Folks have already began to check him to Khamzat Chimaev, how do they stack up, can he wrestle him, can he do that? I’m not saying he’s not prepared for Khamzat as a result of I don’t assume he ever shall be prepared for Khamzat, proper now he simply isn’t,” Cormier added. “Bo Nickal has now seen the other facet of fame. I’m wondering how he’s going to deal with negativity coming his course. I wasn’t unfavourable.
“I’ve no drawback with Bo Nickal. I consider he’s going to be high-quality. I don’t have an issue with the efficiency. I believed he fought rather well, however there’s room for enchancment. Everyone mentioned it! Let’s simply take our time. We don’t must rush him, that’s all I’m saying.”
Bo Nickal Responds to Daniel Cormier’s Rationalization
To Nickal’s credit score, he was fast to squash any beef he had with Cormier after getting an in depth clarification from the previous champ-champ.
“Completely agree,” Nickal said on X whereas sharing Cormier’s feedback. “I’ve of room for enchancment and I recognize the clarification @dc_mma thanks.”
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