“Everything else comes after that” - Anatoly Malykhin would prefer rematch with ‘Reug Reug’ before fighting Shamil Erdogan

Reigning and undisputed ONE middleweight and light heavyweight MMA world champion 'Sladkiy' Anatoly Malykhin of Russia says he fully intends on facing Shamil Erdogan eventually. He just has to take care of unfinished business first against his tormentor.

Malykhin lost his heavyweight MMA gold to Senegalese wrestling sensation Oumar 'Reug Reug' Kane last November at ONE 169. And after he regains his golden belt, 'Sladkiy' says he will focus his attention on Erdogan.

Speaking to ONE Championship in a recent interview, Malykhin said:

"Right now, the only fight that matters in this division is my rematch with Kane. Everything else comes after that."

Malykhin is currently working toward a potential rematch against 'Reug Reug' in the near future. But Erdogan is quickly creeping up on his other belts.

Erdogan is fresh off a scintillating head kick knockout of Myanmar legend 'The Burmese Python' Aung La N Sang last week at ONE 171: Qatar.

ONE 171: Qatar was broadcast live from the Lusail Sports Arena in Lusail, Qatar, last Thursday, February 20. Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action via replay on-demand on watch.onefc.com or on ONE Championship's official YouTube channel.

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Anatoly Malykhin on fighting for what he love: "Everything is possible"

Anatoly Malykhin is one of the hardest-working fighters in the game today. And he knows exactly what it takes to become a world champion, and that's fighting for the things and people he loves.

He told Red Corner MMA:

"Who do we do this for? Obviously, first of all, we do it for ourselves, for ourselves, for our families, for a living. But after all (of that), we do it for our country, for the boys who support us over there, to let them see that everything is possible. There’s nothing special in it. Here we are, regular boys, regular Russian men, Dagestani men, Chechen men, Ingush men…here are all of them. Not one of us has 10 limbs. Everyone has two arms, two legs, one head. Everything is possible."

Stay tuned to Sportskeeda MMA for all the latest news and updates surrounding Anatoly Malykhin's next fight.