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Former interim bantamweight Muay Thai world title challenger Nico Carrillo couldn't have asked for a much better debut in the featherweight division.
After destroying everybody in his wake in the home of martial arts, 'King of The North' saw himself in unfamiliar territory after being brutally knocked out by Nabil Anane at ONE 170 last January.
It was a wake-up call for the Scottish slugger, who humbly accepted that his days in the 145-pound ranks had come to an end. With redemption in mind, Carrillo opted to start fresh in the murderer's row of talent that is ONE's stacked 155-pound Muay Thai division.
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There was no feeling-out process for the 26-year-old heavy-hitter since he got paired up with one of the division's most respected mainstays, Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong, at ONE Fight Night 30 last April.
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The rest, as we now know, is history. Nico Carrillo announced himself as a major player at featherweight with another resounding knockout victory.
He recalled that satisfying return in an interview on Conor Malone's YouTube channel, saying:
"Just everything. Everything was perfect, mate. It's like a snowball effect of bad snowball effect, but also pendulums to good, and that's what I found. Everything was just going well. I was eating good, I could learn, I was cognitively more switched on for longer because I wasn't purely depleted."
'King of the North' added:
"I was just ticking boxes. And then fight day, I wasn't nervous. There were no nerves because just everything felt good. I got in the ring, felt his power - welcome to 70 kg division. Felt his power - ah, no problem. That was that. Brilliant."
Nico Carrillo says featherweight move reignited his love for the sport
Even the elite of the elite experience burnout, especially in Nico Carrillo's case, since cutting down to bantamweight became a harrowing ordeal.
'King of the North' admittedly found a new lease in his career the moment he decided to move to a higher weight class and chase greatness at featherweight.
"I'm just, I feel that I'm just in love with the sport again," Carrillo told ONE Championship. "I'm in love with that again. I've not enjoyed a fight camp like this in so long."
Watch the full interview:
