UFC 309 results: Bo Nickal wins unanimous decision over Paul Craig as crowd chants ‘overrated’

Bo Nickal made the decision for the first time in his career when he defeated Paul Craig at UFC 309, but perhaps his biggest obstacle was the crowd in New York.

Recognized as one of the most hyped prospects in recent memory, Nickal essentially ripped away his first six opponents, but he came after Craig with a much more tactical game plan without making a single attempt. While the standout wrestler won the fight definitively, the crowd showered him with boos and even started chanting “overrated” in the third round.

When the fight was over, the judges all scored the fight 30-27 for Nickal, who didn’t let the negativity get to him afterward.

“Honestly, I feel great,” Nickal said. “I went there and dominated for 15 minutes. I screamed at him for 15 minutes. I’m excited.”

Nickal resigned to show off his offense early on, while Craig was happy to stand right in front of him and trade shots. While Nickal lunged for a few of his punches, Craig did a good job of controlling the kicks and then firing back with a few of his own.

Just before the first round ended, Nickal ducked down briefly and came back up with a pair of overhand lefts to keep Craig honest in the offensive exchanges.

Craig continued to frustrate Nickal, but the three-time NCAA champion managed to crack him with a huge punch that effectively ate the Scot. It was clear that Nickal was aiming for the knockout, while Craig tried to stay patient and attack him from the outside.

As Craig fired hard kicks that rattled Nickal’s arms, he was still hit with harder punches to the head. Nickal didn’t seem to show much fear as he stepped into the pocket to launch his punches, but his accuracy wasn’t always good.

The crowd grew restless in the third, with the middleweights clawing at each other but not really engaging much. Nickal was still throwing bombs with many of his punches, including another stiff left that shot Craig straight in the eye.

That ultimately put Craig in danger for the first time when a mouse formed under his eye and blood began to drip down his face. Nickal followed with another hard shot that put Craig flush, but time was running out as the loyal fans at Madison Square Garden gave him the case after anticipating another thrilling finish.

While it probably wasn’t the way he envisioned the fight ending, Nickal got valuable cage time and defeated a veteran with more than four times his experience. It wasn’t his best night at the office, but Nickal still got the job done and is now 7-0 in his career.