“Unstoppable energy” - Two-division world champ Anatoly Malykhin getting leaner and closer to middleweight limit

Two-division world champion Anatoly Malykhin and his coach provided an update on the weight cut for his upcoming world title fight.

In March 2021, Malykhin made his ONE Championship debut with a professional MMA record of 8-0. Since then, the hard-hitting Russian has become a two-division world champion by capturing the light heavyweight and heavyweight MMA straps through five promotional fights, with all of his wins coming via KO/TKO.

On March 1, Malykhin looks to make history by becoming the first simultaneous three-division world champion in ONE history. To do so, ‘Sladkiy’ must defeat Reinier de Ridder in a rematch for the ONE middleweight MMA throne.

Before stepping into the cage, Malykhin must overcome the weight cut as he tests himself at middleweight for de Ridder’s throne. Luckily for him, things are going as planned, with ‘Sladkiy’ only needing to shed fifteen more pounds with nearly a month left.

Earlier this week, Malykhin’s coach, John Hutchinson, shared an Instagram story with the following caption:

“Unstoppable energy, @anmalykhin starts the middleweight takeover. Weight cut in progress”

Malykhin’s coach on Instagram

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Reinier de Ridder claims he underestimated Anatoly Malykhin’s power in first fight

Reinier de Ridder was the one who initiated a fight with Anatoly Malykhin by calling him out. Little did de Ridder know he would be overpowered by Malykhin, leading to his first professional MMA loss. Heading into their rematch, ‘The Dutch Knight’ has learned his lesson about the Russian’s knockout power.

During an interview with ONE, De Ridder had this to say about Malykhin:

“He has a very strong right hand. He’s very dangerous with it. But, to be honest, I was like, ‘I’ve seen this before, and I’m just going to take him down easily and choke him out.’”

Since losing against Anatoly Malykhin, Reinier de Ridder took a brief stop at another sport. That said, he competed in a submission grappling match against Tye Ruotolo in May 2023, with Ruotolo emerging victorious by unanimous decision. De Ridder now looks to silence the doubters by retaining his middleweight MMA throne at ONE 166 at the Lusail Sports Arena in Qatar.