One of the most hyped prospects in MMA history could soon be on the move. Years ago, Bellator signed Aaron Pico (13-4) to a contract before Pico ever fought professional. Pico was an Olympic caliber wrestler and he was also revered for his incredible boxing skills. He was looked at as a “Can’t Miss” prospect which is why Bellator signed him at such a young age.
Pico was signed as a teenager and made his debut back in 2017 when he was 20-years-old. Debuting at MSG, all eyes were on Pico and he lost in 24 seconds. It was a humbling moment for the premier prospect. In his first seven fights, Pico went just 4-3 and he got knocked out twice. It looked like all hope was lost, but then he moved to Jackson Wink in New Mexico.
After that move, Pico became a completely different fighter. He fought smarter and went 6-0 in his next six leading him to a title eliminator against Jeremy Kennedy. Ultimately, Pico lost that fight due to a shoulder injury sustained in the first round.
Since recovering from that injury, Pico has gone 3-0 and was supposed to get a Bellator title fight against Patricio Pitbull, but that fell through. Pico’s agent Ali Abdelaziz revealed to MMA Junkie that Pico’s contract is up and he’s officially a free agent.
PFL / Bellator or the UFC?
Abdelaziz revealed the news a few days ago and said, “I’m sure the UFC wants him. I’m sure PFL wants to keep him. … Pico’s a businessman. Pico likes money. UFC, of course he would love to become a UFC champion, but if PFL can offer me a deal I can’t refuse, then he’s going to take it. But if he said, ‘I want to go to the UFC,’ I have to go get an offer from the UFC and PFL can have the right to match it.”
It’s clear to me that the PFL has no interest in letting Pico go. Donn Davis has come out and revealed that the promotion has offered Pico a massive contract and a title fight to try and get him to stay. As mentioned, Pico was supposed to fight Patricio Pitbull but that fell through and Pitbull has been very vocal about getting his release from the promotion due to their inability to book him fights.
Pico has remained quiet since the acquisition and he did fight once on the PFL vs. Bellator Champs card back in February. It’s been almost a year since he’s been in the cage and you have to think that he’s getting anxious. Word behind the scenes is that the Professional Fighters League is really trying to steady the ship this year after a rocky first year after the Bellator acquisition.
Retaining Pico and getting him a big fight would go a long ways. That said, I think it’s inevitable that he makes the move over to the UFC. If Aaron Pico really believes in himself, the biggest fights against the best competition is in the UFC. No disrespect to the PFL and Bellator, but the talent pool is no where near as deep at 145 or 155.
If he makes the move to the octagon and stays at his natural 145, think of the potential matchups just inside the top ten for Pico. You’re talking about guys like Alexander Volkanovski, Diego Lopes, Yair Rodriguez, Brian Ortega, Arnold Allen, and others. Not too mention arguably the best P4P fighter in the world is the champion in Ilia Topuria.
If the PFL is able to retain Pico, that is absolutely massive for them and I guarantee it’s going to cost them a ton of money. However, if you’re someone who likes to wager, I’d say the safe bet is that you’ll see Aaron Pico inside the octagon in 2025.