ONE Championship fans are still amazed at how Anatoly Malykhin left a trail of destruction in his storied journey to become the first-ever three-division ONE MMA world champion.
The world’s largest martial arts promotion shared three of Malykhin’s most terrifying knockouts on Instagram with the accompanying caption:
“The triple champ has a lot to smile for 🏆 Will Anatoly Malykhin remain heavyweight MMA king on November 8 when he defends the crown against Reug Reug at ONE 169? @anmalykhin”
Fans shared their reactions to Malykhin’s dominance in the comments section:
“Imagine just having 3 titles in any league this guys a unit.”
“Anatoly for the win 🔥”
“That [R]eug thing goin DOWN.”
“09 NOV BY KO ROUND 1. LETS GOOOO @anmalykhin 🔥🙌”
The Golden Team fighter’s boxing skills and solid takedown defense have brought him six finishes in as many fights under the ONE banner.
However, his ground game will face its toughest test yet when he defends the ONE heavyweight MMA world championship against Senegalese wrestling star Oumar ‘Reug Reug’ Kane at ONE 169: Malykhin vs. ‘Reug Reug’ on Nov. 8 inside the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
Anatoly Malykhin addresses retirement talks
Anatoly Malykhin, who also holds the ONE light heavyweight and middleweight MMA world championships, plans to hold all three crowns for a long time. But at 36 years old, ‘Sladkiy’ knows he cannot fight forever.
Malykhin said in an interview with Red Corner MMA:
“You have to find your stop button when you notice you’re taking lots of hits, and it’s affecting your health and mindset. But it’s not that easy because your whole life is in sports.”
