Bo Nickal first visited the White House in 2019 as a member of the NCAA Division 1 collegiate wrestling champion Penn State Nittany Lions team.
Nickal then famously struck up a friendship with United States President Donald Trump, and the two later became golfing buddies.
Seven years later, Nickal is a burgeoning mixed martial arts star and rising UFC middleweight contender who, on Sunday night in Washington, D.C., participated in a fight in front of the President at UFC Freedom 250 with the White House mere feet away in the background.
Nickal made quick work of fellow American Kyle Daukaus to improve to 9-1.
After an early takedown, Nickal landed an elbow from Daukaus’s guard that opened a cut over Daukaus’s left eye. Once back to the feet following some referee intervention, Nickal landed a left hand that sent his opponent to the canvas, and Daukaus curled up as the referee halted the action.
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Nickal’s inclusion on the one-of-a-kind card was relatively unsurprising considering his history with the President, not to mention the fact that he is one of the more highly touted up-and-coming 185-pounders in MMA.
Daukaus, on the other hand, was a relatively random choice for Nickal’s opponent. He is a quality fighter who has been enjoying his second stint in the UFC after mixed results from 2020 to 2022 over the course of a seven-fight stretch. Daukaus got his career back on track in Cage Fury FC, winning that organization’s middleweight title in 2023 and defending it twice in 2024 before earning a second shot in the UFC.
The 33-year-old from Philadelphia went 2-0 in the UFC in 2025 thanks to a 43-second knockout of Michel Pereira in August and a 50-second submission over Gerald Meerschaert in November.
Daukaus hadn’t been finished since back-to-back TKO losses at the end of his first UFC tenure, but he was on the receiving end of some solid Nickal shots this night.
Nickal’s only loss in MMA was in March 2025 when Reinier de Ridder finished him with knees to the body, and he has made marked improvements in the striking department since that defeat.
Before stopping Daukaus, the three-time Division 1 collegiate wrestling champ was riding high off a November knockout win over multiple-time world jiu-jitsu champ Rodolfo Viera. The world-class grapplers ironically traded strikes until Nickal, 30, ended things by landing an epic head kick knockout.
As for what could be next for Nickal, he will begin turning his attention to the top of the division as he enters his prime fighting years.
The Colorado native was asked at Wednesday's media day about a potential future matchup with former champion Khamzat Chimaev, a fighter Nickal has drawn comparisons to at points in his career.
Nickal responded that if the UFC approached him about a Chimaev pairing, he’d "absolutely" accept the matchup.
