"He has a lot of gifts as a fighter. But he has a fatal flaw, which is: Whenever he gets hit with a hard shot, he goes down. So that's something that I'm hoping to exploit in our fight. But aside from that, he is a great fighter."
"In theory, every time he gets knocked out, he comes out more cautious and uses more of his wrestling, so he doesn't expose himself too much. But there's a big factor here - in UFC, they want you to be exciting. And he's coming off a loss in a title eliminator. He still has to impress."
Patricio Freire will face Aaron Pico in a featherweight matchup at UFC 327 on April 11 in Miami. While acknowledging Pico's overall fighting abilities, Freire identifies a critical weakness: Pico's susceptibility to being knocked down by hard shots. Three of Pico's five career losses came via knockout, including a recent spinning backfist knockout by Lerone Murphy. Freire expects Pico to adopt a cautious, wrestling-heavy approach following his loss, similar to his historical pattern. However, Freire believes this defensive strategy could backfire in the UFC, where exciting, fan-friendly performances are valued. Pico faces pressure to impress after his title eliminator loss, creating a dilemma between playing it safe and taking the risks necessary to satisfy UFC expectations.
Read at Sherdog
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