Bo Nickal is finally set to make his highly anticipated UFC debut, when he faces off against Jamie Pickett at UFC 285.
The highly touted prospect picked up two first-round finishes on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2022, submitting both Zack Borrego and Donovan Beard. Nickal was initially scheduled to take on Pickett at UFC 282: B?achowicz vs. Ankalaev in December. However, the bout would be scrapped after Nickal sustained an injury in his training camp.
Now rebooked, Bo Nickal will seek to pick up a dominant win over ‘The Night Wolf’ to kickstart his career in the UFC. This fight booking would be announced by renowned MMA journalist Nolan King.
Bo Nickal will fight Jamie Pickett at #UFC285 on March 4th. (first rep. The @mma_kings
) #UFC #MMA #UFCESPN #UFC2023 pic.twitter.com/RL9L7Ax50N
— Marcel Dorff
) 
(@BigMarcel24)
Jamie Pickett currently holds an MMA record of 13-8, with a 2-4 record in the UFC. ‘The Night Wolf’ is currently coming off back-to-back losses, having been KO’d by Denis Tiuliulin at UFC 279 and submitted by Kyle Daukaus at UFC Fight Night: Walker vs. Hill.
Pickett does have respectable decision wins over Joseph Holmes and Laureano Staropoli on his record, having also KO’d Jhonoven Pati on the Contender Series. However, this is clearly a fight designed to serve as an entry point for Bo Nickal’s UFC career, and Pickett will no doubt open as a heavy underdog.
The two men clash at UFC 285, a PPV event set to take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The card does not yet have a main event fight, although the following matchups have already been booked:
Jessica Penne vs. Tabatha Ricci
Farid Basharat vs. Da’Mon Blackshear
Amanda Ribas vs. Viviane Araújo
Cody Garbrandt vs. Julio Arce
Julian Marquez vs. Marc-André Barriault
Mario Bautista vs. Guido Cannetti
Derek Brunson vs. Dricus Du Plessis
Geoff Neal vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov