“Every middleweight should run” - Tiger Muay Thai coach John Hutchinson says all opponents should fear Anatoly Malykhin

Anatoly Malykhin’s striking coach, John Hutchinson, believes every middleweight will be put on notice when the Russian juggernaut makes his highly anticipated debut in the division on Mar. 1.

After winning both the ONE light heavyweight and undisputed heavyweight MMA world titles in his last two outings, Malykhin is gearing up for a chance to make history when he meets reigning ONE middleweight MMA world champion Reinier de Ridder in the ONE 166 headliner at Lusail Sports Arena in Qatar.

“Locked IN 🔒 Can Anatoly Malykhin become a three-division World Champion on March 1 when he challenges Reinier de Ridder for the middleweight MMA throne at ONE 166: Qatar? 🏆🏆🏆”

Tiger Muay Thai’s John Hutchinson offered a word of warning to all the middleweights in ONE Championship, letting them know that Malykhin will be just as much of a monster in their weight class as he is at heavyweight.

“He’s gonna be a monster at this weight,” Hutchinson said. “Every middleweight should run.”

Anatoly Malykhin feeling faster and more powerful at middleweight

Going into the contest, Anatoly Malykhin is an incredibly impressive 13-0 in his mixed martial arts career and is clinging on to a 100% finish rate. That includes highlight-reel knockouts against the likes of Amir Aliakbari, Kirill Grishenko, and former ONE heavyweight MMA world champion Arjan Bhullar.

With all of those victories coming at heavyweight, many fight fans have questioned whether or not his signature power will still be present when he jumps down two weight classes at ONE 166. Speaking with the South China Morning Post, ‘Sladkiy’ was quick to hush the doubters, saying:

“I feel at middleweight, I don’t only feel faster, but I feel more powerful. Even though [De Ridder] has proven himself at middleweight, I feel great [and confident of a victory].”

ONE 166: Qatar is available live and free to all Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.