After winning in his amateur MMA debut with a first-round submission, Bo Nickal has announced that he will be making a quick return to the ring on Friday, November 5, in Pensacola, Florida.

This fight will be broadcast on FITE.com in a pay-per-view stream. Nickal will face former two-time SEC middleweight wrestling champion and owner of Familia MMA Billy Good as a part of the fight card at Island Fights 70 at the Pensacola Bay Center.

Good comes into the fight with significantly more amateur MMA experience than Nickal’s first opponent, David Conley, who had fought only once prior to the fight. Good holds a record of 5-3 after getting his last win by submission in late March 2021.

This fight should prove to be more of a true test for Nickal as it is rare that two former NCAA wrestlers with this much talent face-off. In his MMA debut, we saw Nickal attempt some strikes, but he relied on his wrestling and grappling ability to secure the quick finish as he was able to take Conley to the mat twice in under a minute. We still saw that Nickal was comfortable throwing more complex strikes as he attempted a right head kick in the first 10 seconds of the match.

This fight is the perfect opportunity for viewers to see more of Nickal’s striking ability as both fighters may struggle to out grapple and overpower the other. It might not be the worst thing in the world for his career if Nickal gets tested here and is forced to stand and bang past one round to grow his endurance as a fighter. The quick return to the ring after only a month shows how little he was challenged in his first bout.

The quick turnaround fits right into Nickal’s plan, though. He told MyMMANews in August that he intends to transition fully to MMA and go professional in 2022.

Will he win? Probably — it’s what he does. But, as former world heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson once said, “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”