- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 475,166
- Reaction score
- 45
Reinier de Ridder has fans rooting for him to shut down Bo Nickal's hype at UFC on ESPN 67.
De Ridder meets wrestling standout Nickal (7-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) in Saturday's co-main event (ESPN2, ESPN+) at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa.
A submission specialist, De Ridder will look to hand the former NCAA Division I champion wrestler at Penn State his first loss. He admits he's gotten messages from all over the world eager for him to beat Nickal – a first time experience.
"I get that from every part of the world. I don't know why," De Ridder told MMA Junkie. "Maybe because he's a such a prospect or something, but people don't really seem to like him that much. It is what it is. At Kill Cliff, there are a lot of Iowa boys who came here from the wrestling program. They really told me, 'Go get this guy.' People just say, 'He rubs me the wrong way.'"
Nickal is coming off a lackluster decision win over Paul Craig at UFC 309, where he opted not to take him down and just outpoint him. De Ridder is aware that he has to bring the fight to Nickal in order to find success.
"I believe I have to make this fight, I have to do this," De Ridder said. "I have to get close to him. I have to put the pressure on him. I have to get into wrestling scrambles, I have to get into the clinch, and it doesn't really matter what he wants to do. He gave (Paul Craig) all the time to circle out. He gave him all the time to move, reset, and get ready for that overhand. I learned a lot from the fight. It was a very interesting fight to watch. He wasn't doing bad. Paul Craig was doing pretty well in the striking. But this one is not going to look anything like that."
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Reinier de Ridder: fans don't really like Bo Nickal | UFC Des Moines
Continue reading...
De Ridder meets wrestling standout Nickal (7-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) in Saturday's co-main event (ESPN2, ESPN+) at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa.
A submission specialist, De Ridder will look to hand the former NCAA Division I champion wrestler at Penn State his first loss. He admits he's gotten messages from all over the world eager for him to beat Nickal – a first time experience.
"I get that from every part of the world. I don't know why," De Ridder told MMA Junkie. "Maybe because he's a such a prospect or something, but people don't really seem to like him that much. It is what it is. At Kill Cliff, there are a lot of Iowa boys who came here from the wrestling program. They really told me, 'Go get this guy.' People just say, 'He rubs me the wrong way.'"
Nickal is coming off a lackluster decision win over Paul Craig at UFC 309, where he opted not to take him down and just outpoint him. De Ridder is aware that he has to bring the fight to Nickal in order to find success.
"I believe I have to make this fight, I have to do this," De Ridder said. "I have to get close to him. I have to put the pressure on him. I have to get into wrestling scrambles, I have to get into the clinch, and it doesn't really matter what he wants to do. He gave (Paul Craig) all the time to circle out. He gave him all the time to move, reset, and get ready for that overhand. I learned a lot from the fight. It was a very interesting fight to watch. He wasn't doing bad. Paul Craig was doing pretty well in the striking. But this one is not going to look anything like that."
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Reinier de Ridder: fans don't really like Bo Nickal | UFC Des Moines
Continue reading...
