Henry Corrales‘s experience paid dividends in his matchup against highly-touted upstart Aaron Pico at Bellator 214 Saturday night in Inglewood, Calif. Both fighters had racked up four straight wins in the Bellator cage leading up to the fight. However, Corrales (17-3), 32, has several more years of actual fight experience than Pico (4-2), who is only 22-years-old. Pico has a decorated amateur wrestling background but after dropping Corrales early in round one, he decided to try to go ahead and put him away on the feet instead of playing to his strengths with a takedown. Corrales was able to regain his composure and counter Pico’s over-aggressiveness and quite costly mistake with a stunning knockout victory. Joe Rogan had the usual suspects over for his ‘Fight Companion’ podcast and their reaction to Pico’s loss shows you just how much hype was surrounding him. Corrales trains out of the MMA Lab in Arizona and deserves all the credit for proving he wasn’t going to be a stepping stone.
“Last night was crazy. Despite the result of Pico’s fight, maybe don’t send hate or criticism towards him. Hating is easy. Remember, He’s a 22 yr old phenom and I’d bet my last dollar he will still be a world champion. Those same haters will be rocking his shirt and hanging off the tip of his dick when he has a belt so get on board now, even after a KO loss.”
-Brendan Schaub
Pico admitted he made a “rookie mistake”:
“Tough one last night. Had a great camp and felt great in the cage. Hit him with some shots and got overly excited for the finish. Made a rookie mistake and should’ve executed my wrestling. It’s all a learning process and the experience will come with more time. Until then, we keep improving and going forward. Thank you to all of my fans, friends, and family for your continued support.”
-Aaron Pico