Anatoly Malykhin, a two-division ONE world champion, is ready to enter the discussion for the title of greatest heavyweight mixed martial arts fighter in the world. He is ready to put his hat into the ring.
To the point that he wants to compete against Francis Ngannou, who many people consider to be the best heavyweight currently competing anywhere in the world.
Malykhin once again fielded questions about ‘The Predator’ after his dominating victory over Arjan Bhullar at ONE Friday Fights 22 last weekend. This victory unified the heavyweight championship belts.
A day after the match, when speaking with Nic Atkin of The South China Morning Post, the unbeaten Russian reaffirmed his intention to compete against the terrifying Ngannou: “I want to test myself against him.”
“I can’t say for sure, but I’m prepared. If he’s willing to fight me here, and Chatri [Sityodtong] has already told me that it’s doable, then we’ll have a battle.
To tell you the truth, this monumental confrontation is quite unlikely to take place, despite the fact that we would all enjoy seeing it if it did.
If ONE Championship and the Professional Fighters League (PFL) are unable to reach an agreement on cross-promotion, then this might as well be an unachievable pipe dream right now.
The truth of the matter is that a fight between Malykhin and Ngannou could have taken place, but the Cameroonian-French star and the promotion located in Singapore were unable to reach an agreement during the highly publicized free agency period that took place earlier this year.
Everyone wants a piece of Ngannou because he is currently one of the most desirable commodities in the mixed martial arts industry.
But if there is one competitor who deserves the opportunity to face Ngannou, it is unquestionably the current ONE heavyweight and light heavyweight world champion. Ngannou has a lot to prove.
Malykhin has fought 13 times throughout his career and has never been defeated. The last five of those fights have been against opponents of the highest caliber and have all taken place within the Circle.
Furthermore, the Russian destroyer brags of an astounding one hundred percent completing rate, which is a record that not even Ngannou was able to accomplish.
Watch the replay of Malykhin’s victory over Arjan Bhullar at ONE Friday Fights 22 to get an idea of exactly how incredible “Sladkiy” is. On the ONE Championship YouTube account, you may watch the full event in its entirety.
