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Preview: UFC 285 ‘Jones vs. Gane’

Nickal vs. Pickett


Middleweights

Bo Nickal (3-0, 0-0 UFC) vs. Jamie Pickett (13-8, 2-4 UFC)

ODDS: Nickal (-1400), Pickett (+850)

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Nickal’s UFC debut has been one of the more interesting stories bubbling over the last few months. The UFC essentially built the 2022 edition of Dana White’s Contender Series around Nickal, a multi-time collegiate champion and Olympic hopeful as a wrestler, and he came through with two big wins that took less than two minutes combined. Nickal is still obviously a work in progress just three fights into his pro career, but all the tools are there. Beyond the wrestling chops, he has shown the ability to hit like a truck. Nickal will surely reach the point where he will hit a wall thanks to not knowing what he does not yet know, but for now, he gets a fight against Pickett in his Octagon debut that offers just enough intrigue to be interesting. Pickett has the physical tools to cause some problems for Nickal, but that has never been the issue for “The Nightwolf,” who has been consistently held back by his unwillingness to pull the trigger. He finally earned a UFC contract in his third outing on DWCS, which was quite instructive, as it was an even fight until Pickett suddenly decided to spring into action and quickly end it thereafter. At the UFC level, Pickett’s wins have mostly been slow grinds that have seen him lean on his opponents, which does not figure to work in this assignment; and given that previous opponents have been able to get the jump on Pickett without much trouble, Nickal’s explosiveness and aggression should find him success almost immediately. The pick is Nickal via first-round submission.



Jump To »
Jones vs. Gane
Shevchenko vs. Grasso
Rakhmonov vs. Neal
Gamrot vs. Turner
Nickal vs. Pickett
The Prelims

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