News Bo Nickal was offered to step in to face Robert Whittaker in the main event; including a nice bump in pay. He explains why he couldn't take the fight

[TCE]

When UFC was scrambling to find the best possible option to headline the card, Nickal claims he got a call, but he didn’t find out about it until it was too late.

“I did get a call, yeah,” Nickal revealed on his YouTube channel. “Unfortunately, I got a call while I was in the mountains of Montana and I didn’t get back to cell service for three days. I came back into cell service to a few text messages saying, ‘Call me back, call me back, call me back!’ And it was too late.”

Nickal said the offer to fight Whittaker was so real that UFC had started discussing a bump in his paycheck to accept the matchup on short notice. Sadly, the multi-time NCAA wrestling champion didn’t get to negotiate his purse because he couldn’t respond before UFC had already found a solution in Aliskerov.

“I’m not going to disclose numbers, but they were up there,” Nickal said. “But, it was just too late. I couldn’t even really consider it because they had already kind of figured everything out, the way they were going to do it, because I was gone.

“Honestly, I don’t want to go to Saudi Arabia and fight. That’s freaking far as crap.”

Bo Nickal explains why he couldn’t accept Robert Whittaker fight offer at UFC Saudi Arabia

Bo Nickal says he was actually offered the opportunity to replace Khamzat Chimaev and face Robert Whittaker at UFC Saudi Arabia.

www.mmafighting.com

 

[Luthien]

I don’t want to go to Saudi Arabia and fight. That’s freaking far as crap.”

Bo was like

 

[AldoStillGoat]

he was never going to take that fight lets be real

 

[ipowerslapmywife]

Bo would’ve ragdolled him

 

[MEAN357]

Good call, Whittaker would've ended a good career before it even got started

 

[The-AxeMurderer]

Rob is a nightmare match up for Bo.

Bo struggled with Bundrages wrestling lmao

 

[Davidjacksonjones]

 

[Kb7]

Good call, Whittaker would've ended good career before it even got started

I don’t know about that, it’s not like Whitaker is a fighter who changes his opponents careers with his fighting style, he just not that guy. I do agree, Whitaker would’ve been to high of a step up in my opinion anyways so it’s probably was for the better he didn’t get to accept this bout. Even if Nickal did and loss to Whitaker, people emphasize losses too much in the first place on this site like it’s the end all be all, it’s only a loss if the loser doesn’t improve on aspects that made him lose.

 

[Mr. Jamie Cee]

“As soon as I saw Khamzat was out, I dropped everything - including my phone - and went and hid in the mountains for three days.”

 

[Spath]

he was never going to take that fight lets be real

He totally would’ve taken the fight had he not been out in the boonies!!

 

[Elegant]

Not even sure any athletic commission would sanction such a mismatch

 

[Unheralded Truth]

“As soon as I saw Khamzat was out, I dropped everything - including my phone - and went and hid in the mountains for three days.”

 

[sanguinius]

Rob is a nightmare match up for Bo.

Bo struggled with Bundrages wrestling lmao

No, he didn’t.

 

[Preston broadus]

Bo nickal is getting brutally knocked out the first time he fights someone that's good. He knows this. He acts more like an influencer than a fighter

 

[Preston broadus]

Is that you bo?

 

[UFCFantasyMVP]

I wanted to see them go slow(er) with Bo... but it seems like he's about to take a giant step up in competition. I think he's ready for some ranked guys, but it's a shame that they're not taking more time with him.

 

[blaseblase]

I don't buy this at all. They've been playing his career safe. Why would they have had him fight a no name on the biggest card of the year and then offer him one of the top contenders a few months later? Makes no sense. If he's supposedly ready to fight Whittaker they would have given him a much bigger fight last time out.

 

[Bobby Boulders]

Not even sure any athletic commission would sanction such a mismatch

Saudi Arabia has already sanctioned a beheading or two in its history, what's one more?

 

[Oscar Madison]

Top 5 on short notice --

This gives me hope that UFC is willing to push Bo into greater risk for greater reward -- and aren't protecting him as much.

 

[torturescorcher]

If Bo Nickal wins his next fight, then Chimaev should have to face him when he returns.