Nickal reveals Pyfer middleweight clash moved from UFC 335 to Cleveland Fight Night main event

Bo Nickal revealed on Thursday night that his middleweight showdown with Joe Pyfer, previously announced for UFC 335 on December 12 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, has been moved to a Fight Night main event in Cleveland in February 2027.

Nickal made the disclosure from the stage of a political rally for Vivek Ramaswamy in Ohio, saying he had received a call backstage moments before addressing the crowd. “My boy right here mentioned my fight in December. It actually got moved to February where I’m going to be main eventing in Cleveland,” Nickal said. He added: “We’re going to go smash this dude and then go take the belt.”

Pyfer wasted little time responding. Reacting to video of the announcement on his Instagram stories, the New Jersey fighter pushed back on Nickal’s confident framing. “Bro talking ‘gonna go smash this dude,’” Pyfer wrote. “I will take your fake dreams away. Poor kid vs. rich kid.”

No specific date for the Cleveland Fight Night has been confirmed by the UFC.

Pyfer arrives in the fight on the back of a four-fight winning streak, the most notable of which was a knockout victory over former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya in the main event of UFC Seattle in February. The 27-year-old has positioned himself as one of the division’s most dangerous contenders.

Nickal, meanwhile, suffered the first loss of his MMA career against Reinier de Ridder but has since responded with back-to-back knockout wins, including a first-round finish of Kyle Daukaus at UFC White House. The undefeated amateur wrestling pedigree that made Nickal a prospect remains intact in terms of finishing power, and a win over Pyfer would push him firmly into title contention.