Rolling with the punches might be one of the more cliche’ sayings, but PFL featherweight Aaron Pico is doing just that navigating the waters of his new fighting home.
“Everything has been good. I can control what I can control, and I’m really happy with this PFL-Bellator merging,” Pico told Cageside Press.
“I think it’s good for us fighters. We have new challenges that we’re going to face as far as opponents. More eye balls to the sport. I’m happy. Everything is good.”
Pico (12-4) didn’t dwell on the merger much because it was out of his hands. Now that he’s all in with PFL he’s keeping his mind strictly on fighting.
“As far as the business side and stuff like that it’s not really something that I get too involved in. I let the management and the president, the matchmakers, get involved with that. They take care of that,” he said.
“For me I always just kept the mindset (of) just be ready. Be ready for when they call and they want you to fight. The answer is going to be yes. Of course there’s a little bit of uncertainty. When are you going to fight? You don’t know when, your manager doesn’t really know what’s going on, so it’s kind of a little bit nerve wracking. I just stayed focused and trained and went on some vacations and rode my horse. Spent some time with my son and trained. I knew it was all going to work out. Now we’re here.”
With PFL vs. Bellator taking place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Pico looks at the bigger picture of it all.
“I’m excited to go to Saudi Arabia. I’ve been watching obviously all the boxing that they’ve put on. They seem like they’re really putting a lot of effort into combat sports. To be a part of that is just really cool,” said Pico.
“I know that 20 years from now, 30 years when I’m reminiscing about the good old days of when I used to fight. To be able to say ‘I was in Saudi Arabia and look what they’re doing now, all the big fights, and I was a part of that early on’ it’s an honor.”
Watch the entire interview with Aaron Pico above. He takes on Henry Corrales in a rematch at PFL vs. Bellator on Feb 24 in Saudi Arabia.
