“He knows it will be the end of him” - Nico Carrillo claims Jonathan Haggerty is doing everything he can to duck fight

Nico Carrillo believes ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world champion Jonathan Haggerty is consciuously avoiding a title fight against him, knowing that it will spell the end of his reign.

The No. 1 contender in the bantamweight Muay Thai division pointed this out in an interview with ONE Championship ahead of his return to action at ONE Fight Night 23: Ok vs Rasulov on Prime Video on July 5 in Bangkok, Thailand. He will take on Thai fighter Saemapetch Fairtex.

The 'King of the North' said:

"Haggerty knows I'm the hardest fight in this division. The reason he's not saying my name is because he doesn't want to build a fight with me. He knows it will be the end of him. That's the honest truth."

Nico Carrillo landed in the No. 1 title contender position after racking up three straight victories, all by way of knockout, to start his ONE Championship journey. His latest victory was over former divisional king Nong-O Hama in December last year.

For his part, Haggerty, who is also the bantamweight kickboxing king, is set to defend the Muay Thai gold against flyweight kickboxing titleholder Superlek Kiatmoo9 in ONE's show in the United States in September.

ONE Fight Night 23 will go down at the famed Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok and will be available live and for free to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.

Jonathan Haggerty says Nico Carrillo deserves a title shot

Contrary to what Nico Carrillo thinks, Jonathan Haggerty said the Scottish knockout artist deserves a title shot and he is open to giving him one.

"The General' made this known in an interview over the Sky Sports MMA Club podcast, highlighting how the 'King of the North' has proven his worth, punctuated by his No. 1 contender standing in the division, to vie for his world title, with veteran British striker Liam Harrison as another option.

Haggerty said:

"There's also Nico Carrillo. He's No. 1. So after I fight Superlek, he's gonna get it. He's the next one to get it for sure. Anyone, really. But them two are the ones would be interesting in the U.K. Liam Harrison and Nico."

Haggerty seized the ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world title in April last year by knocking out former champion Nong-O Hama. He succesfully defended it for the first time last February with a TKO of Brazilian challenger Felipe Lobo.

He is set to defend it again in September in the United States again flyweight kickboxing main man Superlek Kiatmoo9 in an all-champion title clash.

Nico Carrillo, meanwhile, is up to see action on July 5 at ONE Fight Night 23 Ok vs Rasulov on Prime Video in Thailand, taking on Thai fighter and No. 4 contender Saemapetch Fairtex.