“Everything was off from there” - Reinier de Ridder recalls the moment he knew he was in trouble against Anatoly Malykhin in Manila

There is nothing more devastating for a fighter’s headspace than to be on the receiving end of a one-sided defeat and reigning ONE middleweight MMA world champion Reinier de Ridder knows that feeling all too well.

For much of his entire career, de Ridder was an unstoppable force of nature that would breeze through his opponents thanks to his insanely long reach while also being extremely talented in the ground game.

But in 2022, ‘The Dutch Knight’ received a stark reminder that not everything was so peachy in the world of combat sports as he sought to defend his ONE light heavyweight MMA world championship against Anatoly Malykhin.

Malykhin put together an unforgettable striking performance as he overwhelmed de Ridder’s massive reach with his boxing skills that produced a first-round TKO in his favor.

Speaking on the documentary produced by Threepeat Media (@threepeatmedia on Instagram), de Ridder opened up on when he knew he was in deep trouble:

“I thought I was just gonna go in and do the thing I always do. I was in the zone pretty well. There was nothing really different than normal. I walked into a right hand pretty early, and just everything was off from there.”.

---

De Ridder - Malykhin 2 set for March 1

At ONE 166 inside the Lusail Sports Arena on March 1, de Ridder will be looking for his revenge against ‘Sladkiy’ as the Russian star looks to take his ONE middleweight MMA world championship.

De Ridder’s advantage will be that Malykhin has never competed in the middleweight MMA division thus far and must use that advantage as best he can come ONE 166.

ONE 166 is available live and for free to all Prime Video subscribers in North America.