Pickett's fight entrance typically involved entering to the song "Wallop" by Chas & Dave, wearing a string vest, cut-off jeans and his customary trilby hat.[3] He is a supporter of the London football club Tottenham Hotspur.[4] Pickett played football and boxed growing up, before becoming interested in MMA.[5]
Mixed martial arts career
Early in his career, Pickett fought mainly for the Cage Rage organisation; his first appearance was on 27 November 2004 with a win over Stuart Grant. He became the Cage Rage British Featherweight Champion on 10 September 2005 at Cage Rage 13 by defeating Ozzy Haluk via submission.
On 22 August, at Ultimate Challenge MMA: Payback (held in The Troxy, London), Pickett won his seventh successive mixed martial arts bout, against David Lee. The win came due to a guillotine choke in the first round.
World Extreme Cagefighting
On 30 October 2009, the Zuffa-owned WEC announced they had signed Pickett to a multi-fight deal. Pickett, fighting at bantamweight, made his WEC debut against Kyle Dietz on 19 December 2009 at WEC 45.[6] He won the fight via submission in the second round, also winning Submission of the Night honours.[7]
Pickett next faced WEC newcomer Demetrious Johnson on 24 April 2010 at WEC 48.[8] In a competitive fight, both men exchanged takedowns and strikes throughout, though Pickett was more dominant on the ground, controlling the fight with well-timed takedowns and counter-strikes: Pickett won via unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, 29–28).
Pickett's next bout was against WEC veteran Scott Jorgensen.[9] Pickett had some success on his feet during the first two rounds, but was ultimately out-wrestled by the 3-time Pac-10 champion in the latter two rounds, losing to Jorgensen 30–27 on all the judges' scorecards.[10]
Pickett then faced Ivan Menjivar on 16 December 2010 at WEC 53.[11] Both fighters proved to be evenly matched; Pickett edged a unanimous decision 29–28.[12]
Ultimate Fighting Championship
Bantamweight
In October 2010, World Extreme Cagefighting merged with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As part of the merger, all WEC fighters were transferred to the UFC.[13]
Pickett faced Renan Barão on 5 November 2011 at UFC 138.[16] Pickett was submitted in the first round via rear-naked choke. The bout earned Fight of the Night honours.[17]
Pickett next fought Yves Jabouin on 29 September 2012 at UFC on Fuel TV 5.[19] He won the fight via first-round KO, earning Knockout of the Night honours in the process.[20]
Pickett faced Mike Easton on 6 April 2013 at UFC on Fuel TV 9.[22] He won the back-and-forth fight via split decision. The win earned Pickett another Fight of the Night bonus.[23]
In late 2013, it was announced that Pickett would drop down to the Flyweight division for his next fight. He was expected to make his Flyweight debut against Ian McCall at UFC Fight Night 37 on 8 March 2014.[27] However, on 13 February, it was announced that McCall had pulled out of the bout and was replaced by promotional newcomer Neil Seery.[28] He won the fight via unanimous decision.[29]
The rescheduled bout with McCall took place on 19 July 2014 at UFC Fight Night 46.[30] Pickett lost the fight via unanimous decision.[31]
Pickett faced Thomas Almeida in a bantamweight bout on 11 July 2015 at UFC 189.[34] He lost his third consecutive fight via KO in the second round.[35]
Pickett was expected to face Henry Briones on 27 February 2016 at UFC Fight Night 84.[36] However, Briones pulled out of the bout on January 22 and was replaced by Francisco Rivera.[37] Pickett won the back-and-forth fight via split decision.[38] 19 of 24 media outlets scored the bout in favour of Rivera.[39]
The bout with Henry Briones was rescheduled and expected to take place on 3 September 2016 at UFC Fight Night 93. However, in early August, Briones was replaced Iuri Alcântara, for undisclosed reasons.[40] Subsequently, the pairing was rescheduled to take place a month later at UFC 204.[41] Pickett lost the fight via submission in the first round.[42]
A rescheduled fight with Henry Briones was expected to take place on 18 March 2017. However, Briones pulled out a week before the event and was replaced by Marlon Vera. Due to the short notice and preparation for Vera, the bout was contested at a catch weight of 140 lbs.[45] Pickett lost the fight via TKO in the third round.[46] After the fight, Pickett confirmed his intention to retire from MMA competition.[47]
Return from retirement
After a self-imposed 17-month hiatus, Pickett signed a multi-fight deal with Absolute Championship Berkut and was expected to fight in ACB's first event in London, ACB 91 against Jesse Brock.[48][49] However, the event was cancelled and Pickett's status with the promotion moving forward is unknown.[50]
Bare knuckle fighting
Brad Pickett signed with BKB, a bare knuckle fighting organisation in Great Britain, and was scheduled to make his debut in the sport and organisation on March 30, 2019.[51] Pickett won his debut.[52]
