US President Donald Trump plans to watch Bo Nickal compete at the White House next year.
While millions of Americans face the real possibility of losing their SNAP benefits due to the ongoing government shutdown, President Trump seems more focused on the completely unnecessary $250 million renovation of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and his planned UFC event in Washington, D.C., in June 2026.
Ever since President Trump announced that Fight Night would be held in the nation’s capital, UFC stars have been pulling out all the stops to compete in the once-in-a-lifetime event. Among them is Nikkal, who directly told the president that he wanted to participate in the festival.
According to the former Nittany Lion, that alone was enough to ensure he was on the card.
“I was promoting the Real American Freestyle Wrestling event on Fox, and President Trump saw it,” Nikkal said during an appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show. “He called me directly, just to cheer me up and talk about the White House fight card. I told him I wanted to be on it, and he said, ‘Done deal.'”
“So he and Dana go way back, but if he puts in a good word, that only helps. I’m honored to be fighting on that card. It’s history.”
The event is tentatively scheduled for June 14, which also happens to be President Trump’s 80th birthday.
Bo Niccal’s first loss in mixed martial arts was a ‘humiliating’ experience
After entering the UFC on a six-fight winning streak, including back-to-back finishes on Dana White’s Contender Series, Nickal suffered his first setback inside the Octagon, suffering a brutal second-round knockout loss to Reinier de Ridder at UFC Des Moines.
“I remember when you asked me if I was going to participate in ‘qualifiers’ and I scoffed at that,” Nickal said. “I was definitely arrogant, which was a little bit true in my position, but I was also arrogant at the same time.
“So I don’t really care where I fight right now. If the UFC wants to put me at the front of the fight card, I’m happy to do that. That’s definitely part of this humility…I don’t think I should get anything I don’t deserve, and I want to get everything I have.”
Nickal will look to bounce back from the first loss of his career when he takes on Rodolfo Vieira at UFC 322 on November 15th.