“Belief is built from the ground up” – Nico Carrillo says there is no arrogance in him after statement finish of Nong-O

Scottish striking standout Nico Carrillo is far from arrogant, but that doesn’t mean he believes in his skills to compete with some of the best fighters in the world.

‘King of the North’ proved that much at ONE Friday Fights 46, scoring a brilliant second-round knockout of former ONE world champion Nong-O Hama.

Perhaps, even more impressive, is the fact that Carrillo did so on essentially one leg after his opponent battered him with low kicks in the opening minutes.

Sticking to his training and a belief in himself, Nico Carrillo delivered a brutal elbow that put Nong-O down for the count, earning his third-straight win under the ONE Championship banner.

“This doesn't come from any arrogance or anything like that, it comes from belief from what we do in training,” Carrillo told the South China Morning Post of his big win. “See if a training camp wasn't perfect I wouldn't be coming out and saying these things. But the belief is built from the ground up, you know? There's no delusion here.”

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Is Jonathan Haggerty next for Nico Carrillo?

Passing the biggest test of his career with flying colors, Nico Carrillo could be staring down the barrel of a showdown with reigning ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world champion Jonathan Haggerty.

‘The General’ claimed bantamweight gold earlier this year via his own highlight-reel KO of Nong-O at ONE Fight Night 9. Since then, he has added a second world championship, besting Fabricio Andrade to claim the vacant bantamweight kickboxing crown.

With an undefeated record inside the Circle and a win over a former titleholder, is Carrillo on the cusp of an all-U.K. clash with Jonathan Haggerty in 2024?

If you missed any of the action or want to relive an epic night in ONE Championship history, the ONE Friday Fights 46 replay can be watched on demand via watch.onefc.com.