VIDEOS: Bo Nickal, Ian Garry, and Cameron Saaiman shined at ...
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LAS VEGAS — Three of the UFC's hottest prospects won their respective fights at the UFC 285 event that took place Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The victories that American middleweight Bo Nickal, Irish welterweight Ian Garry, and South African bantamweight Cameron Saaiman scored, though, were not without incident.
Nickal made his UFC debut on the card after his two appearances on last year's Contender Series wowed UFC boss Dana White.
As a three-time NCAA wrestling champion from Penn State, Nickal is widely regarded as a future champion and, potentially, a generational MMA talent.
Indeed, the ways in which he transitioned from position to position, to assert a grappling authority over Jamie Pickett, appeared to be effortless.
Midway through the opening round, Nickal's continuous attempts to secure a submission yielded a win as he made Pickett tap to an arm-triangle choke.
However, just before Nickal made Pickett tap, he may have hit his opponent with a low blow.
It's something Nickal disputes, telling Insider and other reporters backstage: "I hit him in the leg, the thigh … If I hit him low, I'd feel bad.
"I'm not a cheater or someone who takes shortcuts," said Nickal. "If I hit him low, I'd relax, and let the ref stop it."
See the controversy for yourself right here:
—Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) March 5, 2023Regarding his first-round win, Nickal said: "Overall the performance was as expected."
He wasn't the only young talent to get a win at one of the UFC's marquee events of the year.
Ian Garry came from behind to beat Song Kenan in style, before strutting like Conor McGregor
Another mega prospect, Ian Garry, competed in a separate fight earlier on the UFC 285 card.
In a welterweight bout set for three rounds, Irish fighter Garry was tasked with taking on Song Kenan and though Garry lost the first round, he came back in style to inflict a helluva lot of damage on Kenan's face, before sealing the win with a third-round finish.
Watch Kenan rock Garry early on right here:
—UFC (@ufc) March 5, 2023See Kenan's face after the eventual three-round beating right here:
Watch Garry's finish here:
—ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 5, 2023The up-and-comer even received praise from his countryman Conor McGregor.
—Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) March 5, 2023Cameron Saaiman was slapped with a penalty — his second in as many fights
Cameron Saaiman, a fighter Dana White once called "The Future" because of his potential, also won.
Saaiman fought Mana Martinez at bantamweight on the preliminary section of the show, and said he's not a dirty fighter despite receiving a point deduction for the second time in as many fights.
Saaiman hit Martinez with two low blows in the opening round alone and was slapped with a penalty from referee Herb Dean.
Despite that, he won rounds two and three to coast toward a victory on points and advance his pro MMA record eight wins (five knockouts, one submission, and two decisions).
