Martin Nguyen fighting Leonardo Casotti without knowing anything about him "was dangerous"

Martin Nguyen walked into a difficult situation at ONE Fight Night 7 on Friday night.

Walking into the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium, ‘The Situ-Asian’ was desperate to get back into the win column after dropping two of his last three bouts. Making the situation even more frustrating was the fact that Nguyen was scheduled to face three different men before eventually squaring off with late-notice replacement Leonardo Casotti.

The late-notice nature of the matchup left Martin Nguyen walking into a fight with a competitor he knew practically nothing about. Nguyen said of the uncertainties throughout fight week:

“I know every fighter is different, but there are some traits that fighters do that you kind of get used to and can expect... But not knowing anything about Leonardo was dangerous and I kinda had to just make it a smart fight, a winnable fight, but also I tried my best to finish him.”

Fortunately, things worked out in Nguyen’s favor and ‘The Situ-Asian’ got back into the win column with a strong performance against Casotti. Nguyen was also complimentary of his opponent following their matchup, saying:

“He’s a tough guy, man. A tough guy.”

Watch the full interview with The South China Morning Post below:

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Martin Nguyen praises the support he gets from his family and teammate Aung La N Sang

With Martin Nguyen’s renewed focus on training, following a rough couple of years under the ONE banner, ‘The Situ-Asian’ praised the support system he has in his life, including his wife Brooke who takes charge of the household in his absence. Nguyen was also thankful to his close friend and Kill Cliff FC teammate Aung La N Sang, who gave him a home away from home while honing his craft:

“Fortunately enough for me, I have a great support system. My wife steps up and leads the family well while I’m away. I get to hang out with Aung La [N Sang] and his family and that kind of brings the family vibe. I’m blessed to have people like Aung La in my life.”

Like Nguyen, Aung La N Sang knows all about the struggles that sometimes follow immense success. Both men are two of the most instrumental fighters in ONE Championship, being the promotion’s first two-division world champions in MMA.

Aung La has gotten into a bit of a groove, taking back-to-back first-round knockouts against Yushin Okami and Gilberto Galvao.

Martin Nguyen followed suit with his unanimous decision victory over Leonardo Casotti on Friday night.