Who is Stewart Nicoll?

Stewart Nicoll (8-0) is the UFC's newest Australian prospect. He debuts with the promotion on Aug. 17, live from Perth, Australia at UFC 305. Nicoll skipped common proven grounds like Dana White's Contender Series and The Ultimate Fighter. Instead, he arrives in the Octagon fresh off his native regional MMA scene. He's scheduled to fight Jesus Aguilar (10-2) on the undercard.

Nicoll had a stellar resume fighting for organizations like Beatdown Promotions and XFC, capturing a flyweight title in his stint with the latter. The 29-year-old has fought professionally since 2018, finishing seven victories with four knockouts and three submissions. Nicoll is comfortable in all aspects of mixed martial arts but shines in grappling and ground fighting.

One of Nicoll's calling cards is shooting takedowns and working his way to the back to execute brutal ground n' pound. The strategy is especially effective when paired with submission attempts. This was Nicoll's path to first-round victory in his fight with Dansheel Moodley (8-5) at Beatdown Promotions 5.

Splitting time between Australia's Team Compton Training Centre and Broz Martial Arts allows Nicoll to hone all his tools with some of the best strikers and grapplers in the nation. Nicoll earned his Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt at Broz Martial Arts and is one of the gym's head instructors. The fact Nicoll coaches is important because it gives him a more cerebral look into MMA, fueling his technical proficiency and execution.

Nicoll will face the ultimate step up in competition upon entering the Octagon. It's hard to gauge how he will do given the experience gap between the fighters he's due to meet and those he fought on the regional scene. However, it's clear the UFC thinks highly of him, but he has much to prove when battling Aguilar.

Stewart Nicoll fights Jesus Aguilar for his UFC debut at UFC 305

Aguilar has already established himself as a dangerous flyweight prospect on the rise. He earned his UFC spot by beating Erisson Ferreira (14-7) on DWCS in 2022. Despite losing his promotional debut to future top contender Tatsuro Taira (16-0), Aguilar rides momentum off two straight wins. His most impressive Octagon showing thus far is a seventeen-second first-round knockout of Shannon Ross (13-9) at UFC 290. Like Nicoll, Aguilar is a dangerous submission artist with six in his career. Aguilar's guillotine choke is nasty, so Nicoll better not shoot any sloppy double legs.

This innocuous early prelim matchup is a pivotal moment in both men's careers. Nicoll is met with the ultimate opportunity. This will be the biggest crowd he's fought in front of and in his backyard. A loss could set him back greatly. Winning stunningly, however, proves he belongs amongst the best in the world. Being an undefeated flyweight with a stellar UFC victory under his belt lends nice leverage.

Losing for Aguilar means he drops to 2-2 in his UFC career. This will cause questions about his ceiling with the promotion and whether or not he'll be fit for more top-flight competition. Winning shifts the narrative greatly because he'd prove himself as the established veteran, capable of turning back the newbie. This puts him in a position to jostle for higher-ranked competition within a volatile flyweight division. Nicoll and Aguilar are tremendous prospects and should put on a show. Their scheduled early prelim matchup will give fans a taste of what the future is like at flyweight.