ONE interim heavyweight world champion Anatoly Malykhin next fight teased on Instagram

ONE interim heavyweight world champion Anatoly Malykhin has been waiting for an opponent since capturing the belt against Kirill Grishenko at ONE: Bad Blood in February.

The Russian juggernaut has had plenty of verbal sparring sessions against some of the biggest names in ONE Championship, including reigning heavyweight king Arjan Bhullar and two-division titleholder Reinier de Ridder.

While we may not know what’s next for Anatoly Malykhin just yet, it appears that ‘Sladkiy’ is gearing up for an upcoming fight based on a recent post on Instagram. In the post, fans were treated to a short clip of Malykhin putting in some work at the gym with the caption:

“Number one Heavyweight 🌎 Fight news 🔜 @anmalykhin 🏆🏆”

Speculation immediately began as to who Malykhin may be stepping into the Circle with. The likeliest scenario is a long-awaited title unification bout with heavyweight champion Arjan Bhullar. The two have traded verbal strikes with one another on Instagram over the last eight months and have come close to squaring off, but the promotion is still hosting two heavyweight champions.

Do you believe Anatoly Malykhin should wait for the unification bout against Bhullar, or would you rather see ‘Sladkiy’ take on another contender with the interim title on the line?

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Fabricio Andrade says Arjan Bhullar does not want to fight Anatoly Malykhin

After months of speculation with little movement thus far, many speculate whether or not the ONE heavyweight unification bout between Arjan Bhullar and Anatoly Malykhin will ever happen. That includes No.1-ranked bantamweight contender Fabricio Andrade, who suggested that ‘Singh’ simply doesn’t want to the fight with the Russian juggernaut:

“So it’s been really frustrating, but he’s still training, he’s still ready,’ said Andrade in an interview with South China Morning Post. “I’m not sure what’s going to happen to him now, but I’m sure he’s ready to fight anybody, anytime. I don’t think Bhullar wants the fight, honestly. He doesn’t want the fight, and I think the division should just move on,” said Andrade.

The interim heavyweight title was implemented in February while Arjan Bhullar worked with the promotion to negotiate the terms of his contract. Once completed, many expected the fight to come together fairly quickly, but that has not been the case. Perhaps Malykhin’s latest tease will be the eagerly-awaited heavyweight scrap we’ve all been waiting for. Perhaps not. Only time will tell.

Watch Malykhin's interim title-winning performance below: