“You had to grow up fast” - Nico Cornejo says being a teenage father toughened him up for MMA career

34-year-old Colorado native 'The Steel City Kid' Nico Cornejo finds himself at the highest point of his mixed martial arts career thus far, on the verge of making his promotional debut in ONE Championship.

He says the many experiences in his life have led him to this moment, and he's more than prepared to seize the opportunity in the world's largest martial arts organization.

One life experience, particularly becoming a young father when he was a teenager, toughened him up earlier than expected.

He told ONE Championship in a recent interview:

"Growing up, you know, elementary school, middle school, I did very well. And then when I hit high school, I was a typical jock athlete, you know, football, wrestling. I even did swimming for two years. I did track for one year."

'The Steel City Kid' continued:

"The competition for wrestling, I wish I would have been focused more on it. However, I did have a job and my main focus was making money and I was a young father. I was a teenage father. So I had to provide for my son on the way. Being a young father, you had to grow up fast. Really fast."

Now, Cornejo is on the cusp of greatness, but he has to take care of business against a young phenom to move forward.

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'The Steel City Kid' Nico Cornejo makes ONE debut against prodigious Adrian Lee at ONE 168: Denver

'The Steel City Kid' Nico Cornejo is ready to take on the youngest member of ONE Championship royalty when he takes on 18-year-old teenage sensation 'The Phenom' Adrian Lee.

Cornejo and Lee lock horns at ONE 168: Denver, which goes down live from the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado, on Friday, September 6th.

Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action live and absolutely free on Amazon Prime Video. Limited tickets to watch are available via Ticketmaster.

Stay tuned to Sportskeeda MMA for all the latest news and updates surrounding ONE 168: Denver as it happens.