Pico Out ‘4 To 6 Months’ For Shoulder Surgery

After falling to pop his shoulder back in during a TKO loss at Bellator 286 last weekend Aaron Pico will now underdog surgery that will sideline him for up to six months.

Pico, who remains one of the more athletically gifted fighters on the Bellator MMA roster today, was injured during his fight with Jeremy Kennedy at Bellator 286. Pico went back to his stool in between the first and second round to see if his corner could pop it back in so he could continue fighting. Despite some gnarly attempts to yank Pico’s shoulder back into place the fight was eventually waved off.

“It just felt stuck,” Pico told TMZ Sports. “I just felt stuck, like something was blocking it, but I wasn’t in pain. But then as soon as the bell rang and they said it was over, I immediately—I usually stay there and he gets his hand raised, but I’m like, ‘Guys, I got to get to the hospital.’ And then when I got to the back, the pain really set it. And then when I got into the ambulance, I can handle pain, but I started to shed a few tears because I was like this thing is the worst pain I’ve ever been in.”

As a result of his dislocated shoulder, Pico will now undergo surgery that will have him sidelined up to six months. It isn’t ideal for a growing fighter in his position, but Pico will have to get health if he wants to make a real run at Bellator’s featherweight title.

“I’ll be having surgery soon,” said Pico. “I’m just having some numbness in my fingers right now, and they’re just waiting for the numbness to go away, and then immediate surgery.

“They say I’ll probably be out 4 to 6 months, so it’s not too long,” continued Pico.

Pico, 26, had won six in a row before his TKO loss to Kennedy at Bellator 286 so this injury couldn’t have come at a worse time. That said, assuming Pico’s surgery goes down without a hitch, he should be able to return in early 2023 and pick up where he left off at 145 pounds. A win or two more and Pico is back in line for his first Bellator featherweight title shot.