“Teamwork makes the dream work” - Aung La N Sang shares backstage warm-up for Martin Nguyen’s latest fight

Martin Nguyen entered the ONE Circle alone, but his team, including a former ONE Championship world champion, was standing by to push him to victory.

“The Burmese Python” Aung La N Sang shared an Instagram video of the final warm-up before Nguyen's walk to the Circle to fight Leonardo Casotti. Aung La and Nguyen are teammates at south Florida’s Kill Cliff FC, having made the journey together to Bangkok for ONE Fight Night 7.

Here's a look inside Nguyen's locker room:

The caption of Aung La's post reads:

“Teamwork makes the dream work! ... If the fight is the final exam, the locker room warm up is like a quick review. You want to make sure all cylinders are firing and your reaction and your power is on point.”

Nguyen's skills were indeed on point in the fight, which he won by unanimous decision.

Casotti, who had nothing to lose in a short-notice matchup against a former world champion in Martin Nguyen, came out aggressive and was looking for a finish. Nguyen was able to adapt to his Brazilian opponent’s aggression, finding his timing and landing with precision as the fight went on.

With the victory, “The Situ-Asian” gets back in the win column after a loss to Ilya Fremanov.

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Martin Nguyen believes mental sharpness on fight night led to victory over Casotti

Martin Nguyen had more than enough reasons to be unfocused by the time he traded punches with Leonardo Casotti. However, in the end, he knew he could trust himself to push through to victory.

Far too many fighters face distractions outside of the cage and find themselves unable to bring out their full potential in a fight. However, Nguyen is happy with his ability to engage with an opponent he knew little about.

During his post-fight interview at ONE Fight Night 7, Nguyen said:

“In my head, I was just making sure that mentally, I turned up. I've said it all week. I just got to make sure I turn up and just keep reminding myself mentally that I have to turn up because when I turn up, man, everyone's in trouble.”

There were more than a few distractions and obstacles working against Nguyen during fight week. Just over a week before the fight, his original opponent, Shamil Gasanov, was forced to pull out.

His second opponent, signed days before the fight, also had to pull out. Leonardo Cassoti was already scheduled to fight at the ONE Friday Fights show the day before, so ONE Championship ultimately called on him to step in on a little more than a day’s notice.

It’s astonishing that Martin Nguyen was able to maintain his mental clarity for the fight that actually happened, as he seemed composed in his victory over the dangerous Brazilian Casotti.