UFC color commentator Daniel Cormier came under fire for his criticism of Bo Nickal during the UFC 309 pay-per-view (PPV) event last weekend in New York City, a fight that saw Nickal head to the judges’ scorecards for the first time in his professional MMA career.
Nickal (7-0) was disappointed by the “weird,” pro-Khamzat commentary.
“Bo Nickal is a bit upset about the commentary during the fight last week,” Cormier said on his YouTube channel. “I’ve got to be honest, this one took me a little bit by surprise, because I do like Bo, and I do believe that at some point he’s going to be a champion. Bo said he took offense to the commentary, but I think he’s a little misguided. I think he may have misunderstood what I’m trying to say.”
UFC CEO Dana White had similar feedback.
“What I’m more trying to say in this fight is let’s not rush him into fights with people that are much more experienced, much more battle tested, much more ready to compete at the highest level,” Cormier continued. “Because it feels like one of those situations where a young guy who has shown so much promise gets a little bit fast-tracked. We have seen this time and time again, where an athlete comes onto the scene, they do so well initially that they get overwhelmed because you don’t know what to do with him.”
This longtime coach knows what to do with him.
“People have already started to compare him to Khamzat Chimaev, how do they stack up, can he wrestle him, can he do this? I’m not saying he’s not ready for Khamzat because I don’t think he ever will be ready for Khamzat, right now he just isn’t,” Cormier added. “Bo Nickal has now seen the opposite side of fame. I wonder how he’s going to handle negativity coming his direction. I wasn’t negative. I have no problem with Bo Nickal. I believe he’s going to be fine. I don’t have a problem with the performance. I thought he fought really well, but there’s room for improvement. Everybody said it! Let’s just take our time. We don’t need to rush him, that’s all I’m saying.”
The 28 year-old Nickal, who remains unranked at 185 pounds, has drawn comparisons to fellow undefeated middleweight phenom Khamzat Chimaev. “Borz” may be on the cusp of a division title shot after steamrolling former champion Robert Whittaker at UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi.
For more on Nickal’s performance at UFC 309 click here.
