Pico secures first UFC finish as brutal right hand stops Keita in 74 seconds

Aaron Pico delivered the most emphatic performance of his UFC career at UFC 333, stopping Losene Keita with a devastating straight right hand at 1:14 of the first round to open the main card. The finish marked Pico’s first stoppage victory inside the octagon and extended his winning streak to two fights.

Pico set the tone immediately, landing a perfectly timed single-leg takedown to put Keita on his back and establishing his wrestling credentials early. Keita scrambled back to his feet, but Pico had already found his rhythm. A sharp, straight right hand sent the former Oktagon champion crashing to the canvas, and Pico followed him down, pouring on ground-and-pound until the referee intervened with Keita face down and unable to defend himself.

“Honestly it feels amazing,” Pico said after the fight. “I’ve been wrestling since I was four years old. I told my coaches after this fight he’s going to wish he put on his wrestling shoes since he was four years old.”

The win carries added significance given the circumstances of Pico’s UFC debut, which ended in a knockout loss to Lerone Murphy. Back-to-back victories — and now a first finish — have repositioned the highly touted featherweight as a credible contender, and he wasted no time making his ambitions clear.

“I want a rematch with Lerone Murphy,” Pico said. “I want to make money, I want to get to the title.”

With a performance this clinical, it will be difficult for UFC matchmakers to overlook Pico when it comes to booking higher-ranked featherweight opposition. Whether a Murphy rematch materialises or a step up in ranking follows, Pico has firmly announced himself as a fighter the division needs to take seriously.