Fabricio Andrade still unsure if Arjan Bhullar really wants to fight Anatoly Malykhin

ONE bantamweight contender Fabricio Andrade doubts that we will see Arjan Bhullar and Anatoly Malykhin unify the heavyweight world championship.

Bhullar and Malykhin are currently scheduled to finally meet inside the circle at ONE Fight Night 8 on March 24.

The fight has been a long time coming and has already been scheduled and canceled in the past. Whilst Bhullar has been inactive since winning the world championship in May 2021, Malykhin has steamrolled through the rest of the division to become the interim champ.

In that time, the Russian has also struck up a friendship with Brazil’s ‘Wonder Boy’ Fabricio Andrade thanks to their training at Tiger Muay Thai.

In an interview with The MMA Superfan, Andrade said that his friend and teammate’s recent run of performances may keep Bhullar on the sidelines:

“We can't be sure until they're both inside the cage. So they can sign contracts. They can do whatever they want. Arjan has been running for a long time. So of course, he put a question mark in everybody's brain when he says he's finally going to fight Anatoly. Especially when Anatoly has been nothing but impressive in his performances, you know?”

Watch the full interview below:

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Confident Fabricio Andrade declares victory at ONE Fight Night 7

In one month's time, Fabricio Andrade will get another opportunity to win a ONE world championship. Until then, he is still declaring himself the uncrowned king of the bantamweights.

In the main event of ONE Fight Night 7, Andrade will face fellow Brazilian knockout artist John Lineker in a rematch from their fight at ONE on Prime Video 3. In their first meeting, Andrade was moments away from winning the bantamweight world championship when the fight was stopped and ruled a no-contest due to an unintentional low blow by 'Wonder Boy'.

On February 24, two of the most exciting fighters in the world will get the chance to resolve their inconclusive first fight. On his Instagram, Fabricio Andrade continued the rhetoric that he has already proven himself to be the best bantamweight in the promotion:

“February 25th Bangkok 🇹🇭 I will show why I am the king of this division 👑 #allthesmoke💨 #oneonprimevideo7”

Whilst he may not have left the first fight with the world championship, Andrade did prove against Lineker that he can compete with the very best in the sport. Undefeated under the ONE banner, ‘Wonder Boy’ is the No.1-ranked contender in the bantamweight division, and at ONE Fight Night 7, he will try to claim the world championship and prove that he's the best.