Bo Nickal thinks UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards would struggle against Khamzat Chimaev but not Islam Makhachev.
Edwards (22-3 MMA, 14-2 UFC) retained his title against Colby Covington at UFC 296, taking care of another elite grappler in the division after defeating Kamaru Usman in back-to-back title fights.
Nickal, who was a standout wrestler at Penn State, thinks if Chimaev (13-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) dropped back down to 170 pounds, he would pose serious problems for Edwards. UFC lightweight champion Makhachev wants to move up and challenge Edwards, but Nickal doesn’t see him dominating despite his Sambo background. He pointed to size as a factor.
“I think there are guys that are going to be able to give him some resistance and stuff,” Nickal said of Edwards on his YouTube channel. “If Khamzat goes back down, that’s a freaking tough fight for him. Islam would be a tough fight for him, as well, but I think that’s really competitive.
“I feel like Khamzat comes down, he would probably beat him up. But Islam coming up, even though he’s a big 55’er, Leon’s big. Leon can freaking strike. Colby was able to hold him down a good amount, so who knows? And Leon’s smart, he keeps his cool so, I don’t know.”
Makhachev (25-1 MMA, 14-1 UFC) is coming off a first-round head kick knockout of Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 294. Even though most of Makhachev’s wins have come by submission, Nickal doesn’t entirely categorize him as a grappler.
“And Islam, he’s not 100 percent grappler,” Nickal continued. “He tries to strike a lot with all the guys he’s fought pretty much.”
