Nico Carrillo continued his dominant run in ONE Championship with another knockout last weekend, and he promised to keep getting even better after his latest win.

“King of the North” stopped #4-ranked contender Saemapetch Fairtex in the second round of their bantamweight Muay Thai battle at ONE Fight Night 23 last weekend inside Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, pushing his record in ONE 4-0 and cementing his place at the top of the divisional rankings.

Nico Carrillo claims to have a long way to go to reach his prime

Speaking in a post-event press conference, the hard-hitting Scot said he feels he has already improved from his last fight and expects to develop further as his promotional tenure continues. 

“Yeah, I’m still improving, [even] in this fight camp alone. I’m a new fighter compared to seven months ago, when I fought Nong-O. That shows how much I’m improving [and what I’ve done] in a space of one fight camp,” Carrillo said.  

“I was inactive for five to three months because of surgery. So I only went back in for 10 weeks, maybe. So in 10 weeks, not even in 10 weeks, six weeks, I’ve improved so much, and I don’t believe I’m in my prime yet. I don’t think I’ll be at my prime until I’m like 27-28. You should still see the best of Nico [to come], and I’m like fine wine.”

“King of the North” in more dangerous form is a terrifying thought for the rest of the bantamweight division. In addition to Saemapetch, he’s also knocked out Thai legends Nong-O Hama and Muangthai PK Saenchai during his time in ONE Championship. 

Having already displayed a well-rounded arsenal, even Carrillo is unclear about where he’ll find improvement. But he’s focused on finding every inch of improvement.

“I’m unsure. It just depends on the fight. I just know I can do things better, and that’s all,” Carrillo said. 

The 25-year-old striker all but confirmed his shot at the ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Title with his win over Saemapetch. But he’ll have plenty of time to work on his skill set before that opportunity arises, as the coveted divisional crown is scheduled to be contested in the coming months.

Cards are going to stack up at ONE Championship

ONE Championship will return to the United States for ONE 168: Denver, on Friday, September 6, and reigning divisional king Jonathan “The General” Haggerty will defend the strap against reigning flyweight kickboxing titleholder, “The Kicking Machine” Superlek Kiatmoo9 in the co-main event. 

Whoever emerges victorious in that tilt will be on the top-ranked contender’s radar for a future match, ensuring that ONE’s stacked bantamweight Muay Thai division will be competitive for some time.