“Started out here winning” - Anatoly Malykhin teasing possible bout after setting up camp at Mount Altai

Two-division world titleholder Anatoly Malykhin appears to be gearing up for his return to the circle.

In June, the ‘Russian Juggernaut’ scored the biggest win of his mixed martial arts career, trading in his interim heavyweight title for undisputed gold as he practically walked through Arjan Bhullar at ONE Friday Fights 22. Malykhin scored a third-round knockout to become the newly-minted ONE undisputed heavyweight world champion, adding another accomplishment to his already illustrious career.

Thus far, no official announcements have been made regarding Malykhin’s first defense of the undisputed heavyweight crown or the ONE light heavyweight world title, but it appears that ‘Sladkiy’ is already making preparations.

“Arrived in Mountain Altai for a training camp 💪 Three years ago before my debut in @onechampionship,” Malykhin wrote in a translated post. “Started out here winning 💪 Decided to recharge for three more years. 💪”

There is certainly no shortage of viable challengers for Anatoly Malykhin at the moment. Iranian wrestler Amir Aliakbari has emerged as a potential opponent for ‘Sladkiy’ after securing three straight victories over Mauro Cerilli, Brandon Vera, and Dustin Joynson.

Following Aliakbari’s recent win, Malykhin stepped inside the ring with the UWW Greco-Roman wrestling world champion and had a rather intense face-off, signaling that the pair could run back their September 2021 scrap with ONE gold on the line this time.

Less than a month after Aliakbari’s impressive performance against Joynson, Senegalese standout Oumar ‘Reug Reug’ Kane delivered an epic performance against 17-time BJJ world champion Marcus ‘Buchecha’ Almeida at ONE Fight Night 13. Kane outlasted ‘Buchecha’ over the course of three rounds, securing a unanimous decision victory and handing the submission specialist his first career loss in MMA.

Who would you rather see Anatoly Malykhin defend his heavyweight throne against first? ‘Reug Reug’ or Iranian heavy hitter Amir Aliakbari?