Penn State wrestling great Roman Bravo-Young is making his MMA debut June 29,he tweeted Thursday night.
Stepping in the grappling game until I can wrestle again. June 29th. Let’s go! pic.twitter.com/Lwy0RoVcLN
— Roman Bravo-Young (@RomanBravoYoung) May 26, 2023
“Stepping in the grappling game until I can wrestle again,” RBY wrote. “June 29th. Let’s go!”
RBY will be taking on Alex Perez in a featherweight bout on part of the fourth UFC Fight Pass Invitational.
The 31-year-old Perez is 24-7 as a pro. RBY’s first pro fight comes more than a year after another Penn State wrestling legend, Bo Nickal, made his professional MMA debut. Nickal had his first pro fight June 3 as part of Jorge Masvidal’s Ikon Fighting Championship. He knocked out John Noland in 32 seconds.
From there, Nickal competed in UFC boss Dana White’s Contender Series, winning both of his fights there to earn a UFC contract. His anticipated UFC debut came March 4, where he submitted Jamie Pickett in the first round.
It’s unclear if RBY’s MMA career will mirror Nickal’s, but his legacy at Penn State is set in stone. Bravo-Young put together one of the greatest careers in Penn State history. He was a three-time All-American, winning three Big Ten championships and two national titles. Bravo-Young’s career didn’t have the storybook ending he and Penn State wanted. The 133-pounder lost his last college match, this past March, a national final against Cornell’s Vito Arujau. Nonetheless, what a career it was.
Although he’s planning to dabble in MMA, Roman Bravo-Young is still focused on having a wrestling career. This was evident in his tweet announcing his impending MMA debut and is also evident by him joining the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club earlier this week.
Per its Twitter bio, the NLWC “serves wrestling at all levels, including Scholastic, Collegiate & Olympic.” The 2024 Olympics, which are set to take place in Paris, are less than a year and a half away. The Penn State greats who will be representing team USA in the Olympics will also be representing the NLWC.
