{"id":603396,"date":"2026-04-13T04:47:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T04:47:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/603396\/"},"modified":"2026-04-13T04:47:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T04:47:08","slug":"aaron-pico-proud-of-measured-ufc-327-performance-i-get-emotional","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/603396\/","title":{"rendered":"Aaron Pico proud of measured UFC 327 performance: ‘I get emotional’"},"content":{"rendered":"April 12, 2026, 9:20 p.m. ET<\/p>\n
MIAMI \u2013 Aaron Pico didn’t get a highlight-reel finish in his return to the octagon, and he’s glad he didn’t.<\/p>\n
Pico (14-5 MMA, 1-1 UFC) picked up a unanimous decision win over former Bellator two-division champion Patricio Freire (37-9 MMA, 1-2 UFC) at UFC 327 on Saturday. It was somewhat of a new approach for Pico, who fought measuredly and didn’t press on getting a knockout despite having “Pitbull” hurt several times during the fight. This was a calculated approach, and one that’s here to stay for Pico.<\/p>\n
“The game plan for this fight was to be long and use my footwork,” Pico said at the UFC 327 post-fight press conference. “He’s a big counter guy. And don’t get emotional. You look at all my fights when I get emotional and I take some heavy shots. That’s why I laugh when people say I don’t have a chin. It’s unfortunate and just sometimes sh*t luck that the big shots that I’ve taken have been in really, really bad positions because I get emotional and put myself in bad positions. I think anybody would go out from the shots that I’ve taken. I just have to be smart and use my skills.”<\/p>\n
Pico, who entered MMA as one of the biggest prospects of his generation, has suffered several knockout losses throughout his career. Pico believes those have been a form of self-sabotage, as he couldn’t help himself, but fight irresponsibly. He will always be down for a brawl, but now only if needed.<\/p>\n
“I still have that dog in me, but I want to keep him locked up unless one day, maybe in the fifth round, I have to go, I have to throw,” Pico said. “But if I’m winning a fight, I took him down, and I’m landing my shots, why do I have to get a knockout? The knockout will come. That’s been the whole approach this fight camp: Just let it come. In sparring, if I got two takedowns, coach Roberto would say, ‘Be smart. Use your jab. Stick and move.’ How I spar is exactly how I fought tonight, and I’m happy, honestly.”<\/p>\n
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