Kwon Won Il ‘needed the win more’ than Artem Belakh, says Anatoly Malykhin

Russian world champion Anatoly Malykhin handed it to South Korean Kwon Won Il for his desire to win in his most recent fight even if it was over his compatriot Artem Belakh.

‘Pretty Boy’ rallied back after being roughed up in the early goings to score an impressive second-round technical knockout victory over Belakh in their featured bantamweight mixed martial arts showdown at ONE Fight Night 11 on Prime Video on June 9 in Bangkok.

Kwon Won Il completed the win by landing a massive right hand with a little over a minute left in the round, which sent Belakh down. From there he moved in and went for ground-and-pound before the referee stepped in and waved off the fight.

What 27-year-old Kwon was able to do impressed ONE light heavyweight and interim heavyweight world champion Anatoly Malykhin, who was at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium to support Russian fighters in action.

‘Sladkiy’ particularly liked the sense of urgency that Kwon Won ll displayed to come up with the win.

He told ONE Championship in an interview:

“This fight was a battle of two characters, and it showed who the win was more important for at this point. Kwon showed that he was the one who needed the win more right now and was able to give more than Artem. That's why he won.”

The victory was the second straight for ‘Pretty Boy,’ and eighth under ONE Championship. As among the top contenders in the division, he is now looking to earn a shot at the world title currently held by Brazilian Fabricio Andrade.

Replay of ONE Fight Night 11 is available for free on Amazon Prime in North America.

Meanwhile, Anatoly Malykhin returns to action on June 23 at ONE Friday Fights 22 in Bangkok, where he will battle reigning ONE heavyweight world champion Arjan Bhullar in a long-awaited unification bout.