Grooming the next Khabib Nurmagomedov? UFC commentator explains Bo Nickal's surprising placement on UFC 300 main card over multiple former champions

Michael Bisping believes Bo Nickal could be the American Khabib Nurmagomedov.

The former three-time NCAA wrestling champion is still just a few fights into his MMA career. However, Nickal has gotten a heavy push from the UFC, thanks to his wrestling career at Penn State. The middleweight has only fought on pay-per-view main cards in his promotional stint so far.

That trend will continue at UFC 300 later tonight. On the opening fight of the main card, Bo Nickal will face Cody Brundage, who is riding a two-fight winning streak. While the wrestler's opponent has won several fights in the octagon, he's still a massive underdog.

Many fans and fighters have taken aim at the fact that Nickal will be competing on the historic main card. However, UFC commentator Michael Bisping believes the move is a wise one.

Speaking with MMA Fighting earlier this week, 'The Count' discussed Nickal's return. There, the Brit pushed back on the fan criticism about the middleweight's placement on the card. He stated:

"I'll tell you why Bo Nickal is on [the UFC 300 main card], because Bo Nickal has the potential to go down as one of the greatest champions we've ever seen. An American version of Khamzat Chimaev, or Islam Makhachev, or Khabib Nurmagomedov. That's the kind of pedigree that he has, and has shown so far."

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Bo Nickal believes he's a better wrestler than Khabib Nurmagomedov

Michael Bisping believes Bo Nickal is the American Khabib Nurmagomedov, but the former NCAA wrestling champion doesn't believe they're equal. While 'The Count' believes that Nickal is on the same level as 'The Eagle', the American believes he's a level above him.

The former Penn State star has made it clear that he could contend for a UFC title as of now. Nickal has called for a fight with Khamzat Chimaev in the past and believes that his wrestling pedigree is above anyone else in MMA.

In a recent interview, the UFC middleweight discussed his wrestling skills, in comparison to those of Khabib Nurmagomedov. There, he opined:

"Some guy asked me if I could beat Khabib in a wrestling match. I'm like, dude, I've wrestled my whole life. That's like asking me if I'm going to stop a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty kick... That's my sport. I've done that my whole life, and I'd go out there and do the same thing to somebody who did it their whole life too."

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