Arjan Bhullar sees the Reinier de Ridder vs. Vitaly Bigdash fight going both ways

Many fans and experts are leaning toward Reinier de Ridder beating Vitaly Bigdash, but not Arjan Bhullar. The reigning ONE heavyweight world champion sees this fight going both ways, and it all depends on who can impose their game plan more effectively in the fight.

De Ridder will stake his middleweight gold against Bigdash in the main event of ONE 159, which will be broadcast live from the Singapore Indoor Stadium on Friday, July 22.

Speaking to ONE Championship in a recent interview, Bhullar broke down the colossal middleweight matchup and shared his thoughts:

“It’s going to come down to whoever can impose their style on the other person. If it’s primarily a grappling match, chances are that de Ridder comes out on top. If it stays standing and they’re swinging and it drags on, it’s Bigdash. So, it’s going to come down to who’s more well-rounded to keep it in their space and in their style and who’s able to impose that."

Arjan Bhullar, who won the heavyweight belt in mid-2021, is currently working on his return, which is expected to come before the end of this year. But while the Indian-Canadian world champion is hard at work, he’s also keeping a close eye on the ONE 159 main event, particularly because he has a vested interest in the winner.

If de Ridder emerges victorious, he fully expects ‘The Dutch Knight’ to come after his heavyweight strap and try to win an unprecedented third world title.

But though the two-division ONE world champion de Ridder is favored to retain his middleweight belt against Bigdash, Bhullar thinks the interesting clash of styles will provide fans with an entertaining main event bout:

“I think it’s going to be a good fight between De Ridder and Bigdash. I think they’re both talented in their own expertise. Like, De Ridder’s primarily a grappler and Bigdash’s primarily a striker, so it’s a clash of styles.”

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Arjan Bhullar has confirmed that he will face Anatoly Malykhin this year

They’ve gone back and forth on social media for months, but it appears that Arjan Bhullar and Anatoly Malykhin will finally get to lock horns sooner rather than later.

The reigning ONE heavyweight world champion and the ONE interim heavyweight world champion are expected to figure in a world title unification bout in the next few months. Although the fight has not been officially confirmed by ONE Championship, Bhullar spilled the beans via his Instagram account just a week ago.

If Bhullar can defeat Malykhin and de Ridder beats Bigdash on Friday night, that sets up a monumental super clash for the ages down the road.