Reinier de Ridder has each cause to rejoice after his knockout win over Bo Nickal this previous weekend at UFC Des Moines, however regardless of his victory, he feels no have to step on his opponent in defeat.
The previous two-division ONE Champion placed on a dominant efficiency at hand Nickal the primary lack of his profession, however he doesn’t purchase the concept that the three-time Nationwide Champion wrestler by some means received uncovered. As an alternative, de Ridder believes that he was the higher man that night time, and he supplied Nickal some recommendation on how he ought to cope with the blowback from the loss.
“It’s at all times like that,” de Ridder informed MMA Preventing on Monday. “There’s a number of hype round him. To be trustworthy, if he’s good, he simply places his cellphone in one other room for 2 days, and he simply spends a while along with his spouse and children. He’s going to get pleasure from a while at residence, recuperate slightly bit, flip his cellphone on once more subsequent week like nothing occurred. All people forgets in a few days. He’ll be high-quality.”
At simply 7-0 in his profession, Nickal was already being touted as a future champion, and he didn’t precisely dissuade anyone from making that argument. Previous feedback about profitable potential fights in opposition to top-ranked middleweights like Khamzat Chimaev began circulating virtually instantly after Nickal received blasted with a physique shot that stopped the struggle and ended his undefeated run within the UFC.
For his half, de Ridder by no means felt that Nickal was wanting previous him or approached the struggle with an overinflated ego, however he additionally is aware of how shortly a foul loss can humble anyone as a result of it’s occurred to him personally.
“The distinction between being very assured and boastful could be very small,” de Ridder mentioned. “I’ve been a sufferer of this prior to now, possibly slightly bit as nicely. I’m at all times assured in my skills, however I’ve stepped over the road slightly bit into vanity as nicely. I don’t really feel he was that boastful coming into this struggle all, to be trustworthy. He was very humble. From what I’ve seen, he was very down-to-earth coming into this struggle.
“It’s as much as him now. I’ve been on this place. I’ve misplaced. I’ve misplaced terribly, like just about principally like this struggle, I misplaced as nicely. Now it’s as much as him to see if this could be a unfavorable factor or a constructive factor. He could make this right into a constructive factor. He can have a look at this as being an enormous lesson and one thing he’s going to develop [from] or he can have a look at this and say that it was a fluke and I simply wasn’t myself that day and f*ck it. However I believe if you happen to see how far he’s already gotten on this recreation, how far he’s gone in wrestling, you possibly can’t have a weak mindset. He’s a really robust man. He’s a really robust particular person, and I believe he’s going to take a while off from planning a struggle, and we’ll see him again in six months, and he’s going to tear by a number of guys.”
He has a lot confidence in Nickal’s skills that de Ridder really hopes that they get the possibility to work collectively now that the struggle between them is over.
“I would love to work with this man,” de Ridder mentioned. “I would love to work with him. Due to the talent set he brings, it might be superior to coach collectively. I don’t actually know if me being a Kill Cliff man now and him being [American Top Team] goes to work out, however possibly we are able to do it low-key and never inform anyone.”
Nickal is perhaps down within the dumps proper now however de Ridder completely expects him bounce again from this loss and are available again even higher than earlier than.
“I’m simply joyful I received an opportunity to struggle him now and never in three years,” de Ridder mentioned. “In three years, he’s going to be a f*cking killer. He’s going to run by everyone.”
So far as his personal profession goes, de Ridder hopes that the win over Nickal vaults him ahead into even larger and higher fights.
Whereas Nickal wasn’t extremely ranked, his identify drew a number of consideration to the struggle, and de Ridder simply knocked him out inside two rounds. With this sort of dramatic win on his resume, de Ridder desires to parlay this efficiency into an excellent larger struggle when he returns to motion later this 12 months.
“That was the factor in my thoughts as nicely, going into the struggle — he may not be ranked within the prime 5, however no less than he’s a top-five identify,” de Ridder mentioned. “In America, everyone is aware of this man. He’s extremely touted; everyone anticipated the world from him.
“I’m hoping this actually places me up there to struggle a man like [Sean] Strickland, like I known as out. So fingers crossed.”
