“Cheeks are getting smaller, blows are harder” - Anatoly Malykhin shows off smaller frame ahead of light heavyweight debut 

Anatoly Malykhin has provided an update regarding his body transformation for the light heavyweight division.

Malykhin is temporarily leaving the ONE Championship heavyweight division to pursue being a two-division world champion. ‘Sladkiy’ currently has the ONE interim heavyweight world title, and he’s taking on Reinier De Ridder for the light heavyweight crown at ONE on Prime Video 5.

The undefeated heavyweight’s management team posted an Instagram update with the roughly-translated caption saying:

“🔥A brief situation on the upcoming fight with Renier de Ridder. Cheeks are getting smaller, blows are harder - on December 3 we are going to write ONE FC history. 😃 Two belt will look very good on Tolina’s waist And in the piggy bank of the fight team “Rat” - even more so! #MMA #ONEFC #Единоборства”

Since making his ONE Championship debut in 2021, Malykhin has a promotional record of 3-0, all KO/TKOs, with wins against Alexandre Machado, Amir Aliakbari, and Kirill Grishenko.

The Russian heavyweight’s next fight against De Ridder will be the ultimate test to validate his massive expectations.

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Anatoly Malykhin warned Reinier de Ridder to stay away from the heavyweight division

Anatoly Malykhin is not short of confidence, stemming from his undefeated record. Reinier de Ridder is also undefeated, 16-0, and a two-division world champion. Instead of competing for a third title, ‘The Dutch Knight’ will defend the light heavyweight strap against the Russian heavyweight. Malykhin had this to say in September about his upcoming opponent:

“De Ridder is a good fighter, of course, since he holds two belts and has zero [losses on his] record. He is worthy of respect. [But] he strikes very badly and he is a very slow, protracted fighter. Compared to me, I think I will drop him down in seven minutes, maximum. It would be a big mistake for him to move a category up.”

Malykhin vs. De Ridder is a must-see matchup between two of the best fighters in ONE Championship. If ‘Sladkiy’ wins, he will become the fourth two-division MMA world champion in promotional history. If ‘The Dutch Knight’ wins, he once again proves to be an elite talent who could fight for a world title in any MMA promotion.

Check out the announcement for Anatoly Malykhin vs. Reinier De Ridder below: