Bo Nickal was backstage when he witnessed Dricus Du Plessis upset Robert Whittaker at UFC 290.
Shortly after Nickal (5-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) knocked out Val Woodburn in just 38 seconds this past Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Du Plessis (20-2 MMA, 6-0 UFC) scored a second-round TKO of former champion Whittaker on the pay-per-view main card.
Nickal was impressed with Du Plessis’ finish, but he’s confident he would have his way with the streaking South African, who is next in line for UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.
“Oh jeez, looks like Dricus is going to finish him,” Nickal told Full Send MMA. “That’s crazy… Hats off to him. I feel like I respect Whittaker a lot. He’s such a tough dude. But, yeah, he (Du Plessis) got it done.
“That’s a fight that I’ll have eventually, I’m sure. I don’t know that he beats the champion, but, you know, I’m sure we’ll fight, and I think that’s easy money for me.”
Du Plessis has finished five of his six UFC fights – including three straight stoppage wins over Darren Till, Derek Brunson, and Whittaker. He is yet to lose in the UFC.
Undefeated Nickal is now 2-0 in the octagon and has finished all five of his professional wins in the first round. Nickal’s 38-second finish was his fastest since a 33-second TKO in his pro debut 13 months ago.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 290.
