Reinier de Ridder on what he believes Arjan Bhullar will do against Anatoly Malykhin

At ONE Fight Night 10, ONE middleweight world champion Reinier de Ridder will make his return to the circle.

There are a few things that are different this time around though. First off, de Ridder will get the chance to compete on the huge May 5 event that will see ONE Championship debut in the United States with a sold-out show at the 1stBank Center in Colorado.

Whilst he is known for his submission skills in MMA, ‘The Dutch Knight’ will be stepping into his opponent’s comfort zone when he faces Tye Ruotolo in a submission grappling contest at the event.

The biggest change for de Ridder compared to previous contests inside the circle is that he no longer has his ‘0’.

Last time out at ONE on Prime Video 5 in December, the Dutchman tasted defeat for the first time in his career, suffering a first-round knockout to interim heavyweight world champion Anatoly Malykhin.

Taking de Ridder’s light heavyweight world title to claim double champion status for himself, the undefeated Russian is now set for a huge unification fight with heavyweight titleholder Arjan Bhullar at ONE Fight Night 12.

In an interview with The MMA Superfan, Reinier de Ridder gave his thoughts on Malykhin’s chances against Bhullar, drawing from his own experience of the Russian’s grappling skills:

“Yeah, of course. Bhullar’s going to come in and try to wrestle. He’ll try to take Malykhin down and put him against the cage. This time, they are of the same weight and the same size. They’re not that tall but they’re both very heavy.”

Watch the full interview below:

De Ridder will face off with Tye Ruotolo at ONE Fight Night 10 on May 5. The entire card will air live and for free via Prime Video for North American viewers.