Let’s begin the Cox/Nickal discussion now

[AIW-HS 15]

Is Bo strong enough to beat him?

[treep2000 1,042]

6 minutes ago, AIW-HS said:

Is Bo strong enough to beat him?

Yes... yes he is.  

[cjc007 733]

He may be strong enough, but he's just not good enough. Kinda like Taylor and Dake.

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[treep2000 1,042]

How will the blogosphere react when Nickal helps Cox up off the mat... I'm being dead serious... 

[AZ_wrestling 111]

Cox is too big and positionally sound imo. Bo is a freak, but I don't think he has the offense to score enough. I'm thinking something like 4-2 Cox for both matches. 

[MDogg 273]

The answer to “Is Bo strong enough to beat him” is yes 100% of the time as long as the other person is in Bo’s weight class.

I personally think Cox wins the match(es) but not because Bo Nickal has a strength deficiency (almost funny to even type that). The freestyle experience gap is just too wide and Cox might be the toughest American to score on P4P.

[Ragu 56]

Not enough people are giving Cox, world champion, enough respect. He beat Dake and DT to make teams in the past and they had years of FS experience in them already. Maybe the next time they meet, if they ever do, Bo could get him but the advantage is Cox's 100% this go around

[TBar1977 4,026]

Cox will be favored, but I am amazed some still think Bo might not be strong enough. That should have ended a while ago. 

Edited April 29, 2019 by TBar1977

[boconnell 1,547]

I think Cox has great length and leverage (super long arms and broad shoulders).  I think his frame will neutralize some of Bo's usual advantages.  I think Bo's the better athlete, but Cox has great lateral quickness and controls the mat very well without tons of tying up and pushing.  I think technically Cox uses mostly low risk attacks and finishes when he converts.  Add it all up and I think Cox is the better wrestler, a tough style matchup for Bo, and a clear favorite.  I think the fact that Bo has to beat him 2 out of 3 makes it far less likely than if it was a single match.  

[treep2000 1,042]

37 minutes ago, boconnell said:

I think Cox has great length and leverage (super long arms and broad shoulders).  I think his frame will neutralize some of Bo's usual advantages.  I think Bo's the better athlete, but Cox has great lateral quickness and controls the mat very well without tons of tying up and pushing.  I think technically Cox uses mostly low risk attacks and finishes when he converts.  Add it all up and I think Cox is the better wrestler, a tough style matchup for Bo, and a clear favorite.  I think the fact that Bo has to beat him 2 out of 3 makes it far less likely than if it was a single match.  

If Cox wins, it's because he outsweats Nickal... Nickal relies on "grappling", not on the art of slip n' slides.  

It's a joke... relax people.  It's going to be a fun match to see, and quite frankly, I think Nickal would give Snyder what-for as well.  I truly believe he's got the moxy, the skill set, and the "IDGAF" attitude to actually pull off beating a world champion.  

[Coach_J 2,134]

Like a fearful octopus spewing an ink cloud, Cox will unleash his sweat tsunami and it will be Bo who slips and slides and falls and Cox the one helping him up.

Edited April 30, 2019 by Coach_J

[Coach_J 2,134]

2 minutes ago, treep2000 said:

If Cox wins, it's because he outsweats Nickal... Nickal relies on "grappling", not on the art of slip n' slides.  

It's a joke... relax people.  It's going to be a fun match to see, and quite frankly, I think Nickal would give Snyder what-for as well.  I truly believe he's got the moxy, the skill set, and the "IDGAF" attitude to actually pull off beating a world champion.  

Dude, you beat me by a minute!

[Scorenomore 71]

Cox has beat Snyder many times at camps, pretty sure he can beat Bo. 

Since Cox went to the OTC he has jumped levels and got his weight under control.  Expect a close match by points but do not expect Cox to be threatened.  

[2td3nf 565]

I don't know if it's accurate to say, but seems like our World champ J'den doesn't get enough respect. (Me too, I picked Taylor and Dake over J'den back then.)

So if Bo wins Trials, I'm sure Cox will still be the favorite and I won't be surprised if J'den sweeps it in two.....but...

....Bo is sort of a different animal and very dangerous. There's also a real good chance Bo will do his thing and open it up which will most likely force J'den to open it up. Or, of course, J'den may try to dominate early, but either way there should be fireworks, points flying and it should bring out the elite technique in both of them. 

These matches should be dynamite.   :D  

[treep2000 1,042]

I'm not advocating for this logic, but I "think" that this is the logic that people use when underestimating Cox:

* His win over DT was "unfair", due to the slip n' slide situation, and thus, only "partially counts"

* His win over Dake was "unfair", because Dake was half his size and gave him everything he could handle

* His win at 92kg was in a "depleted" weight class internationally

* His march to his World Championship was riddled with close scoring matches (unlike Dake's high amplitudes and Taylors humiliation of his opponents)

* Wins over Snyder is in practice.  JO "owned" Yianni too

Again...  I'm NOT advocating this logic, but I think that these types of thoughts run through people's minds when they're hypothesizing and projecting their thoughts.  Add in the fact that Nickal is literally tossing men around like Rag Dolls, and these men can also wrestle really really really well... yeah... the recipe is there for naysayers.

Edited April 29, 2019 by treep2000

[Plasmodium 1,848]

Cox' mother loves him too much for him to lose.  She wills his victories from the bleachers.

[de4856 362]

Well I think J'den has the Freestyle experience and should be favored, but Bo, does train with DT, and I am sure that they have had discussions about how to wrestle and game plan forJ'den. Now will that be enough to get Bo over the top? Who knows, but I think if Bo comes up with the right game plan he has a chance. Either way, I am pretty certain that we will find out in June. 

[Mphillips 1,023]

Edited April 30, 2019 by Mphillips

[AIW-HS 15]

Cox has proven his ability to neutralize great offensive wrestlers many times. I don’t expect him to “open up” with Bo. That would play into Bo’s hands. I expect low scoring matches where he looks for Nickal to take chances where he can counter his way to points. 

Edited April 30, 2019 by AIW-HS

[PRyan2012 344]

By far the most anticipated Final X match up. Bo could not have won this match up last year. Not sure what happened to make him jump levels between his Jr and Sr years. I guess full time training with Taylor and sometimes Varner. Last year Bo said he and Cael were pretty even. This year he said he beats him 9 out of 10 matches and if he tried  10 out of 10:-) What caused his levels to jump? Watch his matches two years ago. Crazy jump. He is world champ material.  I am glad they never have wrestled. Super stoked for this match! I have no idea how it will go!

[cangemi 228]

Man pretty good that we are questioning if are World champs will make team.

Actually this weight and Dakes

 

[PSUMike 445]

I see a fast paced but ultimately low scoring defensive battle with Cox winning something like 4-2 or 6-2. 

[Jim L 284]

I'm picking Cox, but Bo winning would not surprise me . Funny to think about two months ago, many of us did not think he would be able to beat Moore and now he is even money with a  world champ

[Mphillips 1,023]

Who, "two months ago" thought Moore would beat Nickal?  Anyone?   

" he is even money with a  world champ"   "Are you on dope?"

 

[Underhook 45]

If DT couldn’t beat out Cox off the heels of beating Yazdani by tech at the World Cup, I don’t think Bo has the stuff to get it done yet either. I expect Bo to look good, and him winning one in the best of three is not impossible, but Cox has ice in his veins. This is going to develop into an incredible rivalry, both guys are still improving rapidly. It’s a great time to be an American wrestling fan! Many of our number twos are also starting to look like medal threats