“I lost track of what makes me great” – Reinier de Ridder on the biggest lesson he learned from shocking loss to Anatoly Malykhin

Former two-division ONE world champion ‘The Dutch Knight’ Reinier de Ridder is a humble enough champion to realize that he made a few crucial mistakes in his last few bouts, particularly a December 2022 showdown with Russian mauler ‘Sladkiy’ Anatoly Malykhin that cost him one of his belts.

He surrendered his light heavyweight MMA gold to Malykhin, losing via shocking first-round knockout at ONE on Prime Video 5.

Speaking to ONE Championship in a recent interview, de Ridder recalled his training situation heading into that first meeting with Malykhin in the Circle and how he plans to change all that in their upcoming rematch.

‘The Dutch Knight’ said:

“In the preparation for the fight and maybe even the fights before, I kind of lost track of what makes me great. I got away from putting in the time as much, developing every little small area of my game.”

De Ridder and Malykhin meet again later this year, and the 26-year-old Dutchman vows to put together a much better performance as he seeks redemption.

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‘The Dutch Knight’ Reinier de Ridder puts his middleweight MMA gold on the line against Anatoly Malykhin at ONE 166: Qatar

Former two-division ONE world champion ‘The Dutch Knight’ Reinier de Ridder wants to prove that he simply wasn’t himself in his December 2022 knockout loss to now-reigning ONE heavyweight and light heavyweight world champion ‘Sladkiy’ Anatoly Malykhin.

The two run it back in an epic rematch at ONE 166: Qatar this March for De Ridder’s middleweight MMA gold. The event will be broadcast live from the Lusail Sports Arena in Lusail on Friday, March 1.

If de Ridder wins, he gains back his composure and renews his confidence. Most importantly, he retains his prized golden belt. If Malykhin wins, however, the Russian will go on to become an unprecedented simultaneous three-division MMA world champion and make history.

ONE 166: Qatar airs live on March 1 via global pay-per-view on watch.onefc.com. Please visit ONE Championship’s official website for more information on how to watch from your location. Stay tuned to Sportskeeda MMA for all the latest news and updates surrounding the event.