“His weapon is very heavy”: Nong-O details what went wrong in knockout loss to Nico Carrillo

There are few matchups that draw more attention from fans than that of a grizzled and decorated veteran looking to capture glory once again by going up against a hungry, young talent who wants to prove he belongs to the biggest stage.

That is certainly what happened in ONE Championship’s final event of 2023 at ONE Friday Fights 46 in December when Muay Thai legend Nong-O Hama squared off against rising star Nico Carrillo.

Nong-O had lost his ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world championship to Jonathan Haggerty a few months earlier and while he had his doubters, the Thai star was ready to give it his all in pursuit of the title he lost.

Despite a spirited performance, Nong-O was again on the losing side of the bout after Carrillo caught him with a big left elbow that sent him to the mat, and he was unable to answer the 10-count.

In an interview with ONE Championship, the 37-year-old recently opened up on what went wrong for him:

“In the second round, a turning point occurred. After I made a mistake, I was hit by Nico's front elbow, causing me to collapse. After that, he came in and threw a big punch at me. I've tried my best to protect it. But I have to admit that his weapon is very heavy. Until it made me feel dizzy.”

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Nico Carrillo shares his perspective

The Scottish star also shared how he got the knockout win over Nong-O, revealing that he was focusing on utilizing his left elbow mostly.

In an interview with the South China Morning Post, Carrillo said:

“You’ve seen in the first round and the second round as well, I nearly had him out there with my hands. I was drilling the left elbow and I caught his leg a few times and handed him with the right elbow. I didn't think the left elbow would knock him out like that.”

Because of his win over the Thai hero, English Muay Thai star Liam Harrison believes that Carrillo should be the next challenger for Haggerty’s ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world championship.