Emerging from the shadows of collegiate wrestling, Jason Nolf and Bo Nickal are poised to redefine their careers with a million-dollar showdown following Nolf’s electrifying MMA debut. Nolf, a three-time NCAA DI champion, recently competed in the Craig Jones Invitational in the 80kg category, where he impressively clinched victory. He also secured a win at the Paradigm Open against former Nittany Lions opponent Andrew Simmons.

The wrestling community lauded Nolf’s triumph, especially significant given Simmons’ esteemed background with two NAIA titles. Now, all eyes are on Nolf as speculation mounts whether he will follow in Nickal’s footsteps into the UFC, potentially requiring even more rigorous training for the challenges ahead.

Jason Nolf’s peers in the wrestling community discuss his ability to succeed in MMA

In a recent YouTube podcast on Bo Nickal’s channel, they discussed the CJI deal secured by Jason Nolf after his BJJ debut. He was in discussion with Connor McGregor who said, “Jason also just announced today he’s uh competing at the CJI, he’s doing Craig Jones Awesome $1 million.” Referring to the Instagram post Nolf wrote, “It’s official! In August I will [be] competing in Las Vegas in the @cjiofficial for a chance at $1 million! Can my wrestling get it done??” Nolf further added how ‘awesome’ the opportunity was for the grappling community. It seems like McGregor and Nickal are both excited for Nolf as well. Expressing how “pumped [ they are] for him.” However, they do think Nolf might need to train more. Especially given how easy the BJJ debut seemed to be for Jason to win. 

Though Nolf does not possess Jiu-Jitsu experience, he’s the best of the best in the grappling community. Which is a huge advantage. Earlier during his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament at the Paradigm Open 3, Nolf proved his mettle. On 9th June, he went up against B-Team’s Andrew Simmons, who hails from one of the best wrestling programs in the country. Both men were aiming for the takedown from the get-go. The first minute was spent entirely hand-fighting and eventually Nolf won by submission. After a brutal arm-triangle chokehold. Keeping up the momentum in the CJI, McGregor is sure, “he’s [ Jason Nolf is ] going to kill it.” Even Nickal agreed saying, “good opportunity, yeah for sure.” Nolf is now going to prepare even harder for the $1M win. 

Jason Nolf’s experience shines through

Earlier this year, Jason Nolf secured victory at the 2024 Grand Prix Zagreb Open in Croatia, defending his title as champion. He achieved an impressive win by defeating Hossein Abouzaripashkolaei of Iran, 2023 Senior World bronze medalist Ramazan Ramazanov of Bulgaria, and three-time Senior World team member Murad Kuramagomedov of Hungary. He also triumphed at the Bill Farrell Memorial International in New York.

Over the last two seasons, Nolf finished as a runner-up in Final X and won the US Opens. These achievements add to his remarkable three-time NCAA championship titles. At Penn State, Nolf was a standout star, compiling a record of 117-3 over four seasons. This exceptional track record solidifies Jason Nolf’s place in the wrestling hall of fame.

Now, Jason Nolf is shifting his focus to MMA and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ). This ambition became prominent in 2020 when Nolf trained alongside Bo Nickal, who made his BJJ debut that year. They trained together at the Mat Factory in Pennsylvania, grappling intensely. Jason’s transition is therefore no fluke, as more wrestlers are embracing BJJ. Even Purler Wrestling tweeted about it saying, “Jason Nolf Jiu-Jitsu debut … .wrestlers are FLOCKING to the sport of Jiu-Jitsu and for good reason. The 2 go hand in hand.” So Nolf may be using BJJ to jump into MMA full-time, just as Bo Nickal did.