Anatoly Malykhin believes Dmitry Menshikov will bounce back and fight for the title again

Anatoly Malykhin believes his countryman, Dmitry Menshikov, will be back in action and once again fighting for a ONE world title in no time.

Menshikov made his promotional debut at ONE Fight Night 11, challenging two-sport ONE world champion Regian Eersel for his ONE lightweight Muay Thai world championship. In the end, it only took Eersel 46 seconds to dispatch Menshikov, scoring his second-straight knockout inside the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok.

Following the event, Anatoly Malykhin, who was in attendance to support his fellow Russian fighters, told ONE Championship that Menshikov was already on the mend despite some minor injuries and he fully expects the knockout artist to be back in the world title picture before long:

“He has some light injuries, but I think he will be back on track soon,” Malykhin said of Menshikov’s condition following the event.

While things didn’t necessarily work out for Dmitry Menshikov inside the iconic venue, Anatoly Malykhin will have the opportunity to win a big one for his country when he steps inside the ring on June 23 for a long-awaited ONE heavyweight world title unification bout with champion Arjan Bhullar.

Malykhin has reigned as the promotion’s interim ONE heavyweight world champion while Bhullar has sat on the sidelines for more than two years following his title win over Brandon Vera.

If you missed any of the action, or just want to relive one of the most epic nights in ONE Championship history, the ONE Fight Night 11 replay can be watched anytime on demand via Amazon Prime Video. And don’t miss Anatoly Malykhin’s return to the ring on June 23 at ONE Friday Fights 22, airing live and for free on ONE Championship’s YouTube channel.