Beau Nikkal suffered the first defeat of his career in a battle with Renier de Rider last weekend, and his head coach knows exactly what went wrong.
Penn State’s three-time NCAA Division I National Champion Wrestler has been one of the most hyped prospects coming to MMA for quite some time, starting his career with a perfect 7-0 record, including six straight finishes. Unfortunately, Nickal’s undefeated run came to an astonishing stop at UFC Des Moines after De Ridder began to be strong against him on the ground in the first round and blows him up with a body shot at the end of the fight in the second round.
American top team coach Mike Brown has been on the corner of Nikkar since the beginning of his career, but he dealt with the loss while acknowledging that there are several factors that led to that shocking defeat.
“It was a tough weekend, but perhaps an A,” Brown wrote on Instagram. “Things are moving fast for Bo Nikkal, and at this point he was able to make things happen and secure six finishes and seven wins with the limited experience he has. Bo has all the attributes you want if your goal is to become a world champion in mixed martial arts, elite MMA fighter.
“But one thing Bo doesn’t have is live fighting cage time, and there’s no substitute for this. The MMA fighting experience is very important, and the actual time in the cage is very important.
Nikkal was a massive favorite to take part in the fight despite de Ridder playing against opponents with more than three times more experience on an impressive resume after actually being a two-division champion in one championship.
From the start of the fight, De Ridar never retreated to chase Nikkar across the cage, and he constantly abused him with strikes, especially on his body, whenever he was trapped in the clinch.
Repeated body blows also paid off on a massive scale when De Ridder saw the open to release a big knee that slammed into the middle, which crashed into the canvas to finish the fight.
“Last weekend, Beau’s lack of experience was shown, and his wrestling and athleticism wasn’t enough to overcome what was ahead of him,” Brown said. “Reinier de Ridder Now 20-2 was a multi-time, two-division world champion in one FC, a highly reputable organization. He proposes to him to reach a strong game plan and do what he needs.”
Of course, the moment Nikkal suffered a loss, he was soon struck by criticism that the 29-year-old middleweight somehow “checked for fraud” after falling in such a biased way.
Brown quickly countered that argument with a subtle reminder that Nikkal is still very young in his MMA career and that this set-off would only drive him forward better.
While losing is not ideal, Brown has known since his years in the cage and now as one of the top coaches of the sport who fell into the sport, he gives people like Nikkar the opportunity to prove he can get back on his feet again.
“It’s a fight game and it’s cliché, but this is where we learn,” Brown said. “This is where we make changes and where we get the most profits, and I am sure this will be fueled by BO.
“Remember, with all the critics’ dogs piled up, Beau is nothing more than an arena man trying to support himself and his family.”