Bellator star Aaron Pico is, arguably, the biggest prospect in mixed martial arts (MMA). His fighting career began at Bellator 180 in June of 2017. After a ton of hype, Pico was defeated via first-round submission in under a minute. Pico bounced back in tremendous fashion, with a four-fight win streak. Each of those victories coming in the first round with a knockout. After finally beginning to look like the prospect everyone thought he was, Pico was matched up against veteran Henry Corrales.
Pico and Corrales co-main evented Bellator 214 this past weekend (Sat. January 26, 2019) in Inglewood. The 22-year-old came out aggressive, rocking Corrales early. It looked like it was going to be another big KO win for the young star. However, Corrales landed a spectacular hook inside the clinch that rendered Pico unconscious. It was Pico’s first loss since his MMA debut.
It was believed he was looking at a title opportunity with a victory over Corrales. Instead, he’ll have to get back to the drawing board and regroup. Recently, MMA Fighting caught up with UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones. “Bones” offered some advice to Pico after his upset defeat (via BJPenn.com):
“He’s the guy with the left hook to the body, right?” Jones said. “He body shots people. I just saw the highlight of him being knocked out. My advice to him would be keep your head up. Keep your head up, really.
“Come back to the drawing board. Come back better. It looked like he wasn’t outclassed, it just looked like he got caught. So keep your confidence in the right place, cause obviously you’re on the right track, and come back even better.”
What do you think about Jones offering Pico advice after his KO loss?
