Fabricio Andrade says 'improved' Reinier de Ridder was no match vs. Anatoly Malykhin: "The end would have still been the same"

Reigning and undisputed ONE bantamweight MMA world champion 'Wonder Boy' Fabricio Andrade of Brazil was impressed with how former two-division king 'The Dutch Knight' Reinier de Ridder performed against his Tiger Muay Thai teammate 'Sladkiy' Anatoly Malykhin earlier this month. However, none of it mattered in the grand scheme of things.

De Ridder put his ONE middleweight MMA gold on the line against two-division world titleholder Malykhin in the main event of ONE 166: Qatar, ONE Championship's historic return to the Middle East on March 1 in Lusail City.

Despite 'The Dutch Knight' showing off his improved striking skills, Malykhin absolutely pulverized De Ridder and ended his middleweight reign in the third round via technical knockout.

Speaking to Sportskeeda MMA in an exclusive interview, Andrade said he knew Malykhin was going to win, regardless of how much better De Ridder was in this fight.

'Wonder Boy' said:

"I feel like if he [De Ridder], fought like he did in the first fight, with more patience, the end [result] would have still been the same as well."

De Ridder has now dropped two in a row against Malykhin, who took both his belts. 'Sladkiy' is now the reigning and undisputed ONE heavyweight, light heavyweight, and middleweight MMA world champion.

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Fabricio Andrade raves about Anatoly Malykhin's three-sport world title win: "I don't think he could have done any better"

'Wonder Boy' Fabricio Andrade was absolutely mesmerized by his Tiger Muay Thai teammate 'Sladkiy' Anatoly Malykhin's historic three-division MMA world title win.

Malykhin's victory makes him the first MMA fighter in history to hold three world titles across three different weight classes simultaneously.

Fabricio Andrade says it's an awe-inspiring achievement that's hard to top. He told Sportskeeda MMA:

"I don't think he could have done any better. I mean, you know, he finished De Ridder once again, not at light heavyweight or heavyweight, but at middleweight. Somewhere totally new for him."

Malykhin says he shed 20 kilograms to make the middleweight limit, which is a remarkable feat on its own.