Malykhin makes history with titles in three classes
ONE MMA world champion Anatoly Malykhin officially etched his name into the record books on Friday, March 1.
The Russian superstar defeated Reinier de Ridder by third-round TKO in ONE 166: Qatar’s main event, adding the ONE middleweight MMA world title to his light heavyweight and heavyweight crowns.
In doing so, “Sladkiy” became the first-ever MMA athlete to hold world titles in three weight classes in the global promotion.
Despite a spirited effort from De Ridder, Malykhin was simply too strong for “The Dutch Knight.”
It was his second win over the former two-weight king after his crushing firstround knockout in 2022 to claim the light heavyweight MMA throne.
ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong praised Malykhin.
“There’s no question that Anatoly is the best heavyweight on the planet. The way he moves, he’s a Russian national team wrestler, the best of the best,” he said.
“But he hits like a truck, even at middleweight. For someone to lose 25kg of muscle, it’s very, very hard [to do that] and still maintain your strength and your power. He looked sharp. I think he’s 14-0 with 14 finishes, 100 percent finish rate. I think 90 percent, or 80 percent are in the first round. If you look at the cumulative record of his opponents, these are killers. I think he would steamroll any heavyweight in the world.”
Malykhin has left a trail of destruction through ONE since his promotional debut in 2021.
The undefeated powerhouse has won all six of his appearances on the global stage inside the distance, four of which have been against some of ONE’s best heavyweights.
His pair of wins over De Ridder are his only appearances below the heavyweight limit, making his move down two weight classes even more remarkable.
In the other world title showdowns at ONE 166: Qatar, returning ONE featherweight MMA world champion Tang Kai stopped interim title-holder Thanh Le in the third round to reclaim his throne.
Finally, the strawweight MMA world title rematch between divisional king Jarred Brooks and top-ranked Joshua Pacio ended in controversy.
Pacio reclaimed his belt by disqualification after an illegal slam by Brooks.
Fans can expect an immediate rematch between the two after the unfortunate outcome.