“I try to keep an eye on guys that I feel like the UFC might try to put me against, and that’s definitely a name that’s been brought up,” Brundage said. “And I said before I had this fight that it was a fight that I wouldn’t mind having. And I’m a big fan of Bo Nickal. I grew up on the wrestling scene and he did a lot for the sport of wrestling. I coach high school wrestling, and he’s the kind of guy you tell your high school kids to go watch if you want to be a good wrestler. So I’ve known him since before he started fighting and I’ve been a fan of his for a long time. But I’m happy to be the guy who will be his litmus test.
You can almost see the smile on the phone lines because Brundage, himself a collegiate wrestler at Newberry College, where he won 96 matches and was a two-time NCAA qualifier, knows MMA is a completely different game. Nickal has passed all of his tests, going 5-0 with five finishes and two wins in the UFC, but he’s not as battle-proven in the Octagon as Brundage, who has posted a UFC record of 4 -4 including three finishes, two performances. bonuses of the night and a few fights where he had to weather a few storms before coming back to win. In other words, he walked through the fire, got burned several times, but still came out the other side.
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“I don’t think there are any easy fights in the UFC, but he’s had more favorable fights, more favorable circumstances, less dangerous opponents,” Brundage said. “I’m definitely the most dangerous guy he’s ever fought. And the most complete. I come from a wrestling background. I’m not a three-time national champion, but I’ve been to the NCAA tournament and wrestled my whole life, just like him. So yeah, I’m excited for the game. This is a question that I was, I suppose, I would say, anticipating. My coach (Marc Montoya) called me and said, ‘Hey, we got an offer for you.’ I said, “That’s Bo Nickal at UFC 300, right?” And he was like, “Holy shit, yeah.” I’m like, ‘I just had a feeling.’