“Knew the sun would rise again” - Nico Carrillo glad to recover from his defeat to Nabil Anane with sublime KO of Sitthichai

Nico Carrillo knew he was bound to rise from his earlier adversity the moment he stepped between the ropes in Bangkok.

The Scottish knockout machine returned to the win column after knocking out Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong in their featherweight matchup at the loaded ONE Fight Night 30 card this past weekend at Lumpinee Stadium.

The win marked his fifth in six matches in ONE Championship and his first since losing to Nabil Anane for the ONE interim bantamweight Muay Thai world title at ONE 170 in January.

Taking to Instagram following his win, Carrillo detailed the mental space he was in heading into his featherweight return against Sitthichai in Bangkok.

Nico Carrillo posted:

"The highest high today after overcoming the lowest low this year. I knew the sun would rise again for me, I kept telling myself this. In order to see that sunrise, I had to get out of the shade."

Carrillo was on an unstoppable start in his ONE Championship career, going a perfect 4-0 with knockout wins over Furkan Karabag at featherweight, Muangthai PK Saenchai, Thai legend Nong-O Hama, and Saemapetch Fairtex at bantamweight.

That run, however, came to a screeching halt when he lost to Anane via first-round stoppage at ONE 170 in January this year.

Determined to bounce back from his lone promotional defeat, Carrillo returned to the weight class he started his ONE Championship career and reinvented his game to become a more methodical yet still destructive force.

Carrillo was a calculated brawler when he faced Sitthichai in Bangkok and employed a strategic pace to wear down the Thai legend.

After cutting Sitthichai's forehead open with a barrage of elbows, Carrillo secured the finish with a gut-wrenching left hook to the liver 2:20 into the second round of their matchup.

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Nico Carrillo collaborates with Sitthichai to help raise funds for earthquake survivors

Nico Carrillo and Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong know they have the platform to impact and help people's lives. They decided to join forces to help the survivors of the deadly earthquake that struck Thailand and Myanmar.

Following their featherweight Muay Thai duel at ONE Fight Night 30, the pair announced on Instagram that they put their fight gear up for auction to help raise funds for the earthquake's survivors.

Carrillo posted:

"For those who don’t know, myself and Sittichai are auctioning off our fight shorts to the highest bidder to raise money for the people that the earthquake in Myanmar and Bangkok effected 🙏🏽🇹🇭 🇲🇲 "