“It took a lot of mental resilience” - Nico Carrillo admits he was a bundle of nerves entering pivotal showdown with Sitthichai

Nico Carrillo admitted that entering his most recent match he felt a lot of pressure, recognizing that it was must-win situation for him. However, he overcame it by staying within their game plan and resilient mentally.

'King of the North' made a successful debut in the featherweight lane at ONE Fight Night 30: Kryklia vs. Knowles on Prime Video on April 4 at the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. He knocked out veteran Thai fighter Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong in the second round of their scheduled three-rounder.

The win came at a key juncture in his career as he shifted to a new lane from bantamweight where he looks to have more success.

Speaking to the Bangkok Post following his victory, Nico Carrillo shared what he went through in the lead-up to ONE Fight Night 30 and on fight night itself, saying:

"So, they try to pull you again, they try to keep you comfortable, they don’t want you to go and do that again. They try to keep you safe. But in order to get this feeling, in order to do this kind of stuff, you need to shut that off. And it took a lot of mental resilience to do that, I’m not gonna lie."

Watch the interview below:

Nico Carrillo came out at ONE Fight Night 30 exactly knowing what he wanted to do. He set things off with telling strikes early that stymied the attack of Sitthichai.

In the second round, he gained further headway when he knocked down 'Killer Kid' with a body shot. It did not take long before he gave the contest an explosive finish, landing a devastating left hook to the body that sent his Thai opponent crumbling to the mat and unable to continue after at the 2:20 mark of the canto.

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Nico Carrillo scores a much-needed bounce-back win

The win at ONE Fight Night 30 was a needed bounce-back for Carrillo after he lost by TKO to Nabil Anane in his previous match in January for the interim bantamweight Muay Thai world title.

Following the loss to Anane, the Glasgow, Scotland native admitted he was not really in a good place mentally, and was in search for ways to get back on his feet.

He found it by making the decision to move up to featherweight, believing it suited him more now at this stage of his career.

Making the victory at ONE Fight Night 30 sweeter was it earned Nico Carrillo a $50,000 performance bonus from ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong.

The full replay of ONE Fight Night 30 is available on demand for Prime Video subscribers in North America.