Bo Nickal shares key insights on how he will approach Reinier de Ridder clash at UFC Des Moines: "I think that I'm a natural striker"

Bo Nickal isn't overly confident that he will utilize his grappling skills against Reinier de Ridder.

Nickal, an all-time great collegiate wrestler, has started his UFC tenure with four consecutive wins, including three inside the distance.

On May 3, Nickal looks to crack the middleweight rankings when he faces No. 13-ranked De Ridder at UFC Des Moines.

Nickal recently posted a video on his YouTube channel showcasing his training camp and had this to say about his upcoming fight:

"There's a chance I shoot a takedown this fight, but I don't know. I'm kind of turning into a striker, so we will see. I'm working on [my kicks], developing, getting better. I think I'm a natural striker. The overhand is there, that's without a doubt, there's no doubt about that."

Reinier de Ridder, a former two-division ONE Championship titleholder, has fought in the UFC twice, securing submissions against Gerald Meerschaert (third round) and Kevin Holland (first round).

Watch Nickal's comments about his upcoming fight with De Ridder below:

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Bo Nickal provides breakdown for potential title fight between Dricus du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev

Dricus du Plessis' next UFC middleweight title defense is expected to be against either the No. 1-ranked Nassourdine Imavov or No. 3-ranked Khamzat Chimaev.

While speaking to MMA Junkie, rising middleweight contender Bo Nickal had this to say about a potential fight between Du Plessis and Chimaev:

"That's an amazing fight. I think those are two guys that have tremendous belief in themselves. They go out and fight extremely hard, so I think you have to give the grappling edge to Khamzat. I think you give the conditioning edge to Dricus and the striking, maybe leans a little bit towards Dricus, but pretty much a toss-up... So, that's going to be an entertaining fight whenever those guys believe in themselves and think they should win, so I don't know, 50-50."

Dricus du Plessis successfully defended his middleweight title against Israel Adesanya and Sean Strickland, pushing his UFC record to 9-0.

Khamzat Chimaev last fought in October 2024, securing a statement-making first-round submission against former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker, extending his promotional record to 8-0.

Watch Bo Nickal's breakdown of Du Plessis vs. Chimaev starting at 5:40 below: