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Aaron Pico recently opened up about his decision to join the UFC after his PFL departure and noted that he has been scouting the top featherweight contenders for quite some time. The exciting new signing highlighted areas he believes he can exploit and expressed his excitement for joining the MMA leader.
Pico was considered the most highly touted prospect in MMA when he began his career at Bellator 180, due in part to his amateur wrestling, boxing, and pankration background.
He overcame some adversity early on in his career before turning it around for the better and is currently riding a three fight winning streak, which improved his record to 13-4.
During his latest appearance on Pound 4 Pound, Pico told hosts Kamaru Usman and Henry Cejudo that he believes he not only belongs in the UFC, but can also defeat the top contenders.
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He mentioned that he has seen areas in their wrestling that he can advantage of and is eager to do so:
"I was like, 'Man, I can beat these guys, especially Ilia Topuria,' and he's going to 155 [pounds] and I think him and Islam [Makhachev], I think that's gonna be a great fight... There's some holes, especially in the wrestling that a lot of people can't see, like, I can beat these guys. I know there's certain areas with my hands and my wrestling and grappling, so now the fun starts."
Check out Aaron Pico's comments below:
Aaron Pico admits there will be pressure when he makes UFC debut
Aaron Pico also admitted that there will be plenty of pressure on him when he eventually makes his UFC debut.
During the aforementioned clip, Pico mentioned that he will have to live up to the hype, especially with the UFC introducing him as an exciting new marquee signing and the additional media attention he is receiving prior to stepping in the octagon:
It's all great to have this media and everybody's excited but at the end of the day, you gotta go in there and knock people's heads off. That's what I'm here to do."
Check out the full episode with Aaron Pico below:
