Reinier de Ridder wants Anatoly Malykhin at end of 2023

Reinier de Ridder wants to return to double-world champion status as soon as possible.

The reigning ONE middleweight world champion is hellbent on reclaiming the ONE light heavyweight world title from Anatoly Malykhin, and he wants to do it before the end of 2023.

In an interview with The MMA Superfan, Reinier de Ridder said that the plan is to get a rematch against Malykhin while keeping the middleweight belt in his possession.

“Yes, that’s the plan for the end of this year,” said de Ridder.

‘The Dutch Knight’ was undefeated before ONE on Prime Video 5, but lost that perfection and the 225-pound world title when he took on Malykhin in December 2022.

The ONE interim heavyweight world champion was as dominant as ever and knocked de Ridder out in the first round to become the sixth fighter in ONE Championship history to simultaneously hold world titles in two divisions.

Before de Ridder can exact his revenge on Malykhin, though, he has some business to take care of at ONE Fight Night 10: Johnson vs. Moraes III on Prime Video.

The Dutch superstar will take on IBJJF world champion Tye Ruotolo in a middleweight submission grappling match on May 5 at 1stBank Center in Colorado.

The bout won’t be the first time that Reinier de Ridder has figured in a submission grappling match at ONE Championship. His first match under the ruleset resulted in a draw against Brazilian jiu-jitsu legend Andre Galvao at ONE X in March 2022.

Coincidentally, Galvao is Tye Ruotolo’s mentor at Atos Gym.

ONE Fight Night 10 streams live and for free to all Prime Video subscribers in North America.

Watch de Ridder's entire interview below: