No takedowns needed – Wrestling star Nickal wins MMA debut with brutal KO

The wrestling superstar showed off his striking.

Decorated wrestling champ Bo Nickal won his professional MMA debut on Friday night. Interestingly enough, he didn’t even need to use that vaunted grappling skills, as the 26-year-old showcased his striking and won with a brutal KO in under a minute.

Nickal, a three-time NCAA Division I wrestling champion and 2019 US Open champion, has been working with American Top Team to hone his MMA game and it seems to be paying off.

After going 2-0 in 2021 as an amateur, Nickal had his professional MMA fight against fellow debutant John Noland at iKON FC 3. Fighting as a middleweight, Nickal dropped Noland with a left straight just thirty seconds in, and followed up with a combination that put him out completely shortly after.

Watch the brutal finish below:

In 2019 alone, Nickal won his third NCAA Division I title, his third Big Ten Championship, along with taking gold at the US National Championships and the U-23 World Championships. He competed from 197 to 213 lbs as a wrestler, but competed both as an amateur and a professional in MMA at 185 lbs.