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Bo Nickal learned some harsh lessons last night (Sat., May 3, 2025) in the co-main event of UFC Des Moines when Reinier de Ridder handed him a second-round knockout loss, breaking his undefeated record and derailing his would-be rise to Octagon greatness (watch highlights).
It’s not Nickal’s fault that he learned painfully while on the job. There’s just no simulating what it’s like to be tired and on the wrong side of an ass-kicking in a genuine fist fight. No amount of sparring at an elite gym like American Top Team or squaring off with world-class wrestlers can compare to the actual sensation of being fatigued and frustrated before the knee even crashed into his liver.
Getting beaten up in a cage fight is a difficult sensation to describe. It doesn’t hurt, not necessarily. Instead, it can be more of an out-of-body experience. With each punch, the lights grow bright, the crowd gets louder, the referee moves a little close. As the strikes add up, it’s harder and harder to pull yourself back into the contest. You don’t have to actively quit — the finish will come passively unless you wake the f—k up, seize the moment, and find a way to survive.
Last night, Nickal failed to respond, plain and simple. He was already turning away from de Ridder’s short punches when the going got tough, which is more damning than falling to the floor after eating a well-placed knee to the liver. I’m not calling him a quitter or a wimp, but he clearly didn’t know how to answer the adversity.
De Ridder was well-equipped to teach this particular lesson. Not only does “The Dutch Knight” have 22-fights worth of professional experience, but One Championship fans will remember when Anatoly Malykhin mauled him in consecutive fights to steal both of his titles — he knows what it’s like to be the nail.
After last night, Bo Knows too.
There’s a silver lining to Nickal’s implosion in that now he knows what it feels like to get smashed. The next time he ends up in a similar position, he should recognize those warning signs of the fight slipping from his fingers and be able to respond more proactively. A little more urgency can make a huge difference in preventing the snowball from gaining speed.
Perhaps equally important, Nickal hopefully has now learned that elite wrestling only goes so far. He was beaten up on the feet and out-grappled on the floor, so his takedown ability really only gave him the ability to choose his demise. With just a little more skill and direction, that may not be the case.
Similarly, Nickal has continually talked like his MMA rise is going to be effortless, like he was Khamzat-ready from Day One — at no point was that the case. It’s takes an exceptionally quick-learning mind or otherworldly physical talent to rise to UFC greatness without any hiccups, and in the eyes of most viewers, Nickal was never quite that guy.
Hopefully, this loss serves as a reality check. Nickal is going to have to really double down and embrace learning all the various aspects of MMA. I’m sure he’s been working hard to improve already, but this defeat should sharpen his focus and clarify the path forward.
Ultimately, this could be his Henry Cejudo vs. Demetrious Johnson moment. Cejudo rose to the top too quickly, got smashed in the clinch, and came back a completely different athlete who accomplished remarkable things. Nickal has the pedigree and work ethic to do the same.
The tricky part is that there’s really no alternative for the blue chip talent. If Nickal doesn’t make major adjustments, he’s not going to climb very high at 185-pounds, and UFC won’t pay him major purses just to beat up unranked opposition indefinitely.
Nickal has found his way to the deep end. Prepared or not, it’s sink-or-swim from here on out.
For complete UFC Des Moines results and play-by-play, click here.