Bellator’s Aaron Pico shared some advice with fellow friend Bo Nickal after the middleweight catapulted himself into the UFC on Dana White’s Contender Series.
Aaron Pico makes the walk to the Bellator sphere for the 14th time in his career. The 26-year-old has spent his full career under the promotion and has been forced to learn on the job with a pile of pressure on his shoulders.
In his time developing his skill set while he climbed the ranks, Pico was a highly touted prospect who was deemed to accomplish great success in the sport and still has plenty of time to do so. Having experienced it all before, Pico shared some words of wisdom with his friend Bo Nickal after his recent blow-up.
Aaron Pico Talks Bo Nickal’s Rise
“I love Bo Nickal,” Pico said when interviewed by Amy Kaplan of FanSided MMA. “We were on three world teams together. I know him very well through wrestling. He’s a hard worker and comes from a really good family.”
After extremely high expectations, Pico made his professional MMA debut in 2017 and, unfortunately, was a victim of a round one highlight reel KO within the first 30-seconds against Zach Freeman. Following that, Pico showed no sign of a mental decline, winning his next four in dominating fashion in the first round. Another setback occurred in 2019, dropping two fights back-to-back, but since the Jackson Wink MMA athlete has won his last six, stopping all but one.
“Take your time. Enjoy the moment. Enjoy the process,” Pico said. “Just stay focused. I don’t think Nickal is not going to be focused. He has a really good team around him, but more importantly, he has a solid family.”
Bo Nickal has the mixed martial arts community on the edge of their seat, gripping with anticipation. Following his mauling over Donovan Beard on Tuesday past on the Contender Series, Nickal already has his official debut booked with the promotion. Nickal is set to clash with Jamie Pickett at UFC 282 on December 10th in Las Vegas. Pico, who showed nothing but love for Nickal, is confident he can achieve great things inside the UFC.
Aaron Pico will face Jeremy Kennedy at Bellator 286 in California. A fight with big title implications.
Will Aaron Pico make it seven consecutive wins at Bellator 286? Will Bo Nickal live up to the hype? Let us know your thoughts.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images and Embed from Getty Images
