“I know a guy who would step in” - Reinier de Ridder throws his name in to replace Arjan Bhullar at ONE 161

It looks like ONE Championship’s two-division world champion Reinier de Ridder is inching closer to making history by becoming the first man to win three MMA world titles in three different weight classes. This is in light of the unfortunate event of ONE heavyweight world champion Arjan Bhullar having to step down from his unification bout with interim heavyweight king Anatoly Malykhin.

It was an apparent injury that forced Bhullar out of the epic heavyweight showdown, something that his rival Malykhin jokingly criticized him for.

With the heavyweight world title up in the air, ONE's middleweight and light-heavyweight king Reinier de Ridder proposed a very enticing match. 'The Dutch Knight', through an Instagram post, suggested that he step in to replace Bhullar in the heavyweight world title bout:

"@theonearjansinghbhullar is out of the heavyweight title fight as expected… I know a guy who would step in 🤩. @onechampionship @yodchatri watch me write history 🔥on @amazonprime #triplechamp ps: I will repost your best photoshops 😉"

Though the post may look like it was in jest, the fight proposed by De Ridder could easily make headlines across all MMA media. If this bout does get put together, it will be one of the very few times a fighter vies for a third world title in a third weight class in MMA.

If De Ridder wins, he will be the first three-division world champion in MMA history. On the flipside, a win by Malykhin could make him the first man to ever notch a win over De Ridder in a professional MMA bout. The stakes could not get higher than that.

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In his last outing inside the circle, Reinier de Ridder made quick work of Vitaly Bigdash

In the main event of ONE 159, Reinier de Ridder delivered a highlight for the ages yet again: a slick submission win over former ONE middleweight world champ Vitaly Bigdash. It was not just a huge win, but also a message to the next opponent to face 'The Dutch Knight' inside the circle.

Early on, Reinier de Ridder had to fight through a deep guillotine choke from Bigdash. After escaping the submission attempt from the Russian MMA star, De Ridder methodically used his pressuring top game and ground-and-pound, eventually catching Bigdash with an inverted triangle choke finish.

The choke was so perfectly technical and tight that Bigdash passed out in mere seconds.

Watch the full fight here: