Danial Williams believes Anatoly Malykhin will always be a fighter to watch out for

Strawweight contender Danial Williams believes Russian juggernaut Anatoly Malykhin will always be a dominant force inside the circle

Malykhin earned ONE Championship’s MMA Fighter of the Year award in 2022 after capturing two world championships, including an incredible first-round knockout of ‘The Dutch Knight’ Reinier de Ridder to win the ONE light heavyweight belt. This marked Malykhin’s second world title victory, the first coming in February when he defeated Kirill Grishenko to become the ONE interim heavyweight world champion.

In an interview with ONE Championship, Williams shared his excitement at seeing Malykhin go to work each time he steps inside the circle:

“I think he’s so compact that if he hits you, it’s going to hurt you or stop you. That’s why it’s exciting to watch him. Seeing how he is, he’s always happy, smiling, and funny, and really good for the promotion. If he’s going to be on a card, you know you’re going to watch him. He’s going to do some damage.”

Anatoly Malykhin has become must-watch TV with a 100% finish rate, including four-straight knockouts. With two massive wins in 2022 and two world titles wrapped around his waist, Malykhin is quickly becoming one of the promotion’s most revered athletes.

---

Anatoly Malykhin is willing to face anyone inside the circle

Newly crowned two-division world champion Anatoly Malykhin will gladly welcome any man that wants to step inside the circle and challenge him whether they are currently under the ONE banner or not. Of course, they’ll first need to sign on the dotted line with the Asian-based promotion to get that opportunity.

Following his epic knockout of Reinier de Ridder at ONE on Prime Video 5 in December, Malykhin took to Instagram and issued an open challenge to any heavyweights that want to test their skills against the Russian juggernaut.

"Thanks to the best league @onechampionship. People often write to me that they want to see my fights with heavyweights from other promotions. I'm ready to fight anyone, but for that they need to sign up for our best league. Well, then we'll see if they will last until the end of the first round 👊🏻"

Open to taking on any one of the world’s top heavyweight fighters, who would you like to see Anatoly Malykhin potentially face under the ONE Championship banner?