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Aaron Pico to fight on Bellator 183 main card looking to rebound from rough debut

[sigallery id=”xSXRnj6vgfXVLbAEyFJUcb” title=”Freeman def. Pico” type=”sigallery”]

As debuts of heavily hyped MMA prospects go, they don’t get much worse than Aaron Pico.

The good news, though, is that the 20-year-old Bellator lightweight will have a chance to make up for it sooner than later.

Bellator President Scott Coker told ESPN today that Pico (0-1 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) has been tabbed to fight on the main card of Bellator 183, which takes place Sept. 23 at SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., and airs on Spike. An opponent for Pico is still in the process of  being finalized.

Pico, who signed with Bellator when he was 18, will be looking to rebound from a disastrous debut last month at Bellator NYC. He was choked out in just 24 seconds by Zach Freeman, a 33-year-old who’d been 1-2 in his previous three fights.

The stunning performance fell well short of expectations for Pico, a wrestling standout who came within one win of making the 2016 U.S. Olympic wrestling team. Pico also won a Golden Gloves title in amateur boxing.

With the addition of Pico’s bout, the Bellator 183 card now includes:

  • Benson Henderson vs. Patricky Freire
  • Roy Nelson vs. Javy Ayala
  • Aaron Pico vs. TBD

For more on Bellator 183 and Bellator 181, visit the MMA Rumors section of the site.

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