UFC brotherhood! Reinier de Ridder stands with Bo Nickal despite Octagon rivalry - “In six months…he is going to tear through a lot of guys”

It was a disappointing weekend for Bo Nickal after he suffered the first loss of his pro MMA career. The middleweight fighter was on a 7-match winning streak until May 3, when his opponent, Reinier de Ridder, handed him his first loss to the fighter. Nickal’s defeat met with severe criticism owing to the fighter’s previously made comment on his willingness to face Khamzat Chimaev. Many believed that the loss was necessary for the fighter to reevaluate his position within the division. However, Reinier seems to have a different take on the issue entirely, where he instead backs the fighter for his skills and abilities.
In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, middleweight contender Reinier de Ridder talks about his previous bout against Bo Nickal. With an overall pro-MMA record of 20-2-0, Reinier currently rides on a 3-0 undefeated streak within the UFC. The fighter applauded Nickal for the skills and expertise he brings to the Octagon during his bouts. Reinier even expressed his desire to work with the fighter sometime in the future.
When asked about the perceived Nickal’s arrogance ahead of the fight, Reinier stated, “I don’t feel he was that arrogant coming into this fight all, to be honest. He was very humble. From what I’ve seen, he was very down-to-earth coming into this fight.” The fighter further added on the next possible approach for Nickal in deciding his next bout, “It’s up to him to see if this can be a negative thing or a positive thing. He can make this into a positive thing. He can look at this as being a big lesson and something he’s going to grow [from] or he can look at this and say that it was a fluke and I just wasn’t myself that day and f*ck it.”
Reinier believes that the past history of Nickal wouldn’t let him get weak and might even help him bounce back, “But I think if you see how far he’s already gotten in this game, how far he’s gone in wrestling, you can’t have a weak mindset. He’s a very strong guy. He’s a very strong individual, and I think he’s going to take some time off from planning a fight, and we’ll see him back in six months, and he’s going to tear through a lot of guys.”

RDR seemed to be very confident about Nickal’s skill set which would develop over time and render him one of the toughest challengers in the division.
“I’m just happy I got a chance to fight him now and not in three years. In three years, he’s going to be a f*cking killer. He’s going to run through everybody.”
Fighters regarding their opponents is one of the most pleasant things to happen in the world of combat sports. Reinier was full of appreciation for his opponent and even backed him up at a time when Nickal was facing tons of criticism and trolls. Reinier expressed his willingness to train with the fighter despite being from different teams.
“I would really like to work with this guy. Because of the skill set he brings, it would be awesome to train together.” Reinier brought up the issue of being from different things, “I don’t really know if me being a Kill Cliff guy now and him being American Top Team is going to work out, but maybe we can do it low-key and not tell anybody.”
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Reinier’s attitude is one of the prime examples of good spirit that prevails in the world of combat sports. While most professional rivalries turn into war of words and even brawls outside the Octagon, seems like there would instead be a good faith between Reinier de Ridder and Bo Nickal.