Bo Nickal confident in grappling Paul Craig at UFC 309

NEW YORK – Bo Nickal is not afraid to go to the ground with jiu-jitsu specialist Paul Craig. 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.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.