Anatoly Malykhin pictures Shamil Gasanov finishing Garry Tonon inside the distance

A pivotal featherweight showdown is taking place this week at ONE Fight Night 12 between no.2-ranked Garry ‘The Lion Killer’ Tonon and no.5-ranked Shamil ‘The Cobra’ Gasanov, and two-division ONE world champion Anatoly Malykhin will be watching closely.

The reigning ONE light heavyweight and heavyweight world champion ‘Sladkiy’ is expected to be in town to corner his Russian countryman, and the 35-year-old has a good idea of how he thinks this fight will go down.

Speaking to ONE Championship in a recent interview, Malykhin disclosed his prediction for this very important featherweight matchup.

‘Sladkiy’ said:

“I think Shamil will finish him before the end of round two. He just needs to get in the ring with Tonon. Then, everything will be fine.”

Gasanov joined ONE Championship late last year, when he defeated highly regarded South Korean Kim Jae Woong via first-round submission. He is currently undefeated at 9 wins and 0 losses, including 7 submission finishes.

On the other hand, Malykhin is one of the most dominant mixed martial arts heavyweights in the world, and he believes Gasanov can follow in his footsteps.

No.5-ranked Shamil ‘The Cobra’ Gasanov is set to face No.2-ranked and former ONE featherweight world title challenger Garry ‘The Lion Killer’ Tonon at ONE Fight Night 12: Superlek vs. Khalilov on Prime Video.

The event broadcasts live from the historic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand this Friday, July 14. Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action live and for free on Amazon Prime Video.