ONE Championship: wedding done, next on list for kickboxer Nico Carrillo is a title shot

Kickboxer Nico Carrillo got married in June and is done waiting: after a career-defining move to featherweight and a knockout win over one of the sport’s icons, the Scot is desperate to stay active and keep stopping opponents as he pushes towards a ONE Championship title shot.

Carrillo faces American Luke Lessei at ONE Fight Night 37 in Bangkok next month, and while he expects an entertaining contest, he is more focused on momentum and making a statement.

“I’m just buzzing to be fighting again,” Carrillo said after landing in Thailand to begin camp at Bangtao Muay Thai. “I had the wedding [to Aimee McIlhinney], got that done, lived it up a bit. Now I want to fight every chance I get. I’d fight every month if they let me.”

Since joining ONE, Carrillo has won five of his six bouts, all by stoppage. His only loss came against bantamweight champion Nabil Anane, a loss that he says confirmed the need to change divisions.

“I was killing myself to make that weight,” he said. “Now at featherweight I’m way faster, way stronger and I can actually fuel properly. I’m enjoying food again. Steak, Italian, all of it. My gas tank is through the roof.”

His featherweight debut could hardly have gone better. Carrillo stopped kickboxing legend Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong, immediately establishing himself as a title contender in one of the organisation’s deepest weight classes. The win propelled him to No 4 in the rankings and put him firmly in the conversation for a title eliminator.