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Herschel Walker wasn't quite ready to put down the gloves.



The two-time Pro Bowl running back and 2-0 mixed martial artist has enjoyed life at the peak of athletic excellence in multiple sports—but he still wanted more.



Speaking to FloCombat in New York City for the Bellator NYC media day, Walker explained why he walked away from MMA.



"Well, the reason I stopped fighting--I couldn't get a fight," Walker said. "I wanted a step up in talent... Most the time I'm doing this for fun because I love to do it, giving all my money to churches. [Other] guys are doing it for their careers, so it's kind of hard to fight Herschel Walker when there's a very good chance you may lose and he's doing it for fun and they're doing it for a career. So that's kind of tough."



While Walker was down to continue scrapping, he doesn't necessarily miss it or regret stepping away, either.



"I don't really miss it because I'm in a gym all the time," Walker said. "I'm still at AKA [American Kickboxing Academy] all the time...So I'm still training all the time. That's what Scott knows. I told him, 'This is something I've been doing a long time. I've been in martial arts for over 40 years now, so I'm always in the gym training, doing something.' And I absolutely love it."



Currently, Walker is excited to watch his teammate Aaron Pico make his MMA debut Saturday, June 24, at Bellator NYC. An Olympic-level wrestler and national Golden Gloves boxing champion, Pico is perhaps the most hyped MMA prospect of all time. Walker believes that hype is well deserved. From his vantage point, Pico is an absolute animal, and he'll show the world why his debut is so hotly anticipated.



"I'm going to be excited to see Aaron fight," Walker said. "The guy is absolutely incredible. I think people on the pay-per-view are going to see something spectacular. That's the thing that's great about Bellator right now. They're bringing some great talent in and putting on some great fights.



"Aaron is very athletic. ... And he's a rounded fighter. That's what makes a great fighter--a guy that can do a lot of things, not just a guy that's one-dimensional."

