Aaron Pico set to return at Bellator 277 vs. ex-UFC fighter Jeremy Kennedy

Aaron Pico’s 2022 campaign is about to kick off.

Pico will take his five-fight winning streak into a featherweight matchup against Jeremy Kennedy on April 15 at Bellator 277 from SAP Center in San Jose. A person with knowledge of the situation confirmed to MMA Junkie that both men have verbally agreed to the fight. MMA reporter Marcel Dorff was first to report the news on Twitter.

Pico (9-3 MMA, 9-3 BMMA), 25, has been on a roll ever since a down 2019 in which he lost twice by knockout. Since then, he’s defeated Daniel Carey, Chris Hatley, John de Jesus, Aiden Lee, and most recently Justin Gonzales by dominant unanimous decision last November at Bellator 271.

Aside from the Gonzales fight, Pico’s other wins during his streak have been finishes, with two knockouts and two submissions. Pico’s turnaround has coincided with a move to Jackson Wink MMA in Albuquerque, N.M., after starting out with Team Bodyshop in his native Southern California.

Kennedy (17-3 MMA, 2-1 BMMA), meanwhile, is coming off one of the biggest victories of his career, a unanimous decision against Emmanuel Sanchez last December at Bellator 272. Kennedy, a 29-year-old four-fight veteran of the UFC, has won four of his past five fights dating back to July 2019.

With the addition, the updated Bellator 277 card includes:

• Champ A.J. McKee vs. Patricio Freire – for featherweight title
• Champ Vadim Nemkov vs. Corey Anderson – for light heavyweight title; grand prix final
• Tyrell Fortune vs. Tim Johnson
• Jeremy Kennedy vs. Aaron Pico
• Kyle Crutchmer vs. Michael Lombardo
• Shane Keefe vs. Tyson Miller
• Cass Bell vs. Gaston Bolanos
• Theo Haig vs. Alan Benson
• Edwin De Los Santos vs. Alberto Mendez
• Bobby Seronio III vs. Calob Ramirez