"I think that fight should happen soon" - 'Buchecha' weighs in on Arjan Bhullar and Anatoly Malykhin title unification

‘Buchecha’ Marcus Almeida is rising up ONE Championship’s heavyweight division and is keeping one eye open on the battle at the top between Anatoly Malykhin and Arjan Bhullar.

The grappling legend made his MMA debut in 2021 and has secured two first-round submission victories against heavy hitters Anderson Silva and Kang Ji Won. Like any competitor, his goal is to secure a world title eventually.

Arjan Bhullar currently holds the ONE heavyweight world title. However, in February 2022, Anatoly Malykhin was crowned the ONE interim heavyweight champion.

There can only be one undisputed world champion, and Almeida thinks it’s about time for them to settle who that is. In an interview with Tom Taylor of the South China Morning Post, ‘Buchecha’ said:

“I think he [Bhullar] denied a couple of fights, right? He didn’t want to fight Malykhin. I think that’s why they put the interim belt out there. I think if he keeps denying fights maybe they will strip him of the belt and we’re gonna have just one belt. But I think that fight should happen soon.”

Malykhin was supposed to challenge Bhullar for the world title late last year, however the fight fell through. It was reported that Bhullar’s management stalled negotiations with the Indian-Canadian champion. Nevertheless, it seems like the stalemate might have come to an end.

Almeida believes that Bhullar can pick his fights as a champion, but he can’t keep doing it forever.

“I bet Anatoly wants to be really active and wants to keep fighting. I think it’s not fair if one guy wants to fight and the other guy doesn’t. There’s a certain time you can do that, but at some point you have to fight or you have to give up the belt. I think that’s what’s going to happen,” Almeida said.

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'Buchecha' aims to continue his streak at ONE: Eersel vs. Sadikovic

Marcus Almeida will be looking to continue his ascent up the MMA ranks as he takes on Senegalese wrestling sensation Oumar ‘Reug Reug’ Kane at ONE: Eersel vs. Sadikovic on April 22.

Kane was scheduled to be Almeida’s opponent in his MMA debut, but the fight ultimately didn’t materialize. ‘Buchecha’ later went on to face two strikers in his first two bouts.

Now, Almeida finds himself crossing paths with ‘Reug Reug’ once again, which will offer a new challenge in his MMA career. Kane is a wrestling legend in his home country and will be the first grappler that ‘Buchecha’ will face in an MMA bout.

Almeida, on the other hand, is a multiple-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion and certainly has what it takes to compete against talented grapplers. Now, he gets to test his skills against a fellow grappler with rules that are not bound by BJJ.

Find out if he can overcome the freight train that is ‘Reug Reug’ and continue his MMA win streak at ONE: Eersel vs. Sadikovic.