OPINION: Anatoly Malykhin may have opened the door for Roberto Soldic to take Reinier de Ridder's middleweight belt

The superfight between Anatoly Malykhin and Reinier de Ridder at ONE on Prime Video 5 was arguably one, if not the biggest, match in ONE Championship last year.

Malykhin achieved two things that night. He became a two-division world champion and laid out the blueprint for beating de Ridder’s previously unsolvable puzzle.

For sure, all those who wish to take away de Ridder’s remaining ONE middleweight world title took notes from that fight. Judging by what Malykhin achieved, Roberto Soldic might just be the perfect guy to replicate the feat.

De Ridder, of course, was previously regarded as one of the most untouchable fighters in the promotion. Prior to his showdown with the Russian, ‘The Dutch Knight’ was unbeaten in 16 fights, with 11 submissions to his name. He laid waste to some of the best guys in the promotion, including Aung La N Sang (twice), Kiamrian Abbasov, and Vitaly Bigdash, among others.

The Dutchman's jiu-jitsu was so ahead of the curve that he was making a case as the promotion’s pound-for-pound great. But that narrative all changed when Anatoly Malykhin roughed him up in under a round. ‘Sladkiy’ exposed the chink in de ridder's once-deemed impenetrable armor.

All it took was impeccable takedown defense and an outstanding striking pedigree.

Using his low center of gravity and heavy hips from his wrestling background, Malykhin avoided a grappling war with de Ridder. In doing so, he took away the Dutchman’s elite submission skills out of the equation and forced him to slug it out on the feet.

Using the dynamite in his hands, Malykhin utilized his crisp boxing to take away RDR’s aura of invincibility with a vicious knockout.

Rewatch Anatoly Malykhin vs. Reinier de Ridder below:

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How Roberto Soldic can emulate Anatoly Malykhin and dethrone Reinier de Ridder

It’s not hard to see that Roberto Soldic possesses all the physical tools that Anatoly Malykhin used against Reinier de Ridder.

‘Robocop’, whose 17 of 20 career wins have come via knockout, has frightening one-shot power in those fists of his.

Many have tried to test the Croatian sensation on the ground. However, none of them succeeded, as their futile takedown attempts were often stifled. Once the fight returns to the feet, Soldic delivers his punishing kickboxing style that overwhelms anyone in his wake.

Malykhin showed that it’s the perfect recipe to bypass de Ridder’s lethal fighting style.

However, we’ll probably have to wait some time for a potential Soldic versus de Ridder showdown. The 28-year-old does have some unfinished business at welterweight. The only fight to make for him at the moment is a rematch with Murad Ramazanov.

In December, the pair fought on the same card as Anatoly Malykhin and Reinier de Ridder in Manila. Soldic was showing off his fabled grappling defense when Ramazanov unintentionally hit him with a knee strike to the groin. Sadly, he was unable to continue and the match was ruled a no contest.

If Soldic can convincingly put away the undefeated Russian in the rematch, then a world title shot against RDR might actually come to fruition. After all, the case can be made that Ramazanov’s elite Dagestani pressure-wrestling style is even superior to de Ridder's.

In the meantime, de Ridder is back in the gym sharpening his fangs after absorbing the first loss of his career.

If the stars do align, a guy like Roberto Soldic could give him another worthy challenge.