As he was with ONE Championship’s Fight Night event last month, two-division ONE world champion Anatoly Malykhin will be on hand to size up the competition at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, this weekend.
The Russian powerhouse will have a close eye on the showdown between heavyweight behemoths Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida and “Reug Reug” Oumar Kane at “ONE Fight Night 13: Allazov vs. Grigorian” on Friday, August 4, as it could offer up a new challenger to his newly unified world title.
Ahead of the intriguing stylistic matchup that pits the 17-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion against one of Senegalese wrestling’s finest, Malykhin noted that he is siding with Almeida.
“One of the main reasons I’m going to ONE Fight Night 13 is to watch ‘Buchecha.’ I’ll be rooting for him; I am not going to hide it. I like him as a fighter and as a person,” he said.
“I think he will win because he is better in every aspect. I think that he will finish with a submission because his opponent does not have his grappling, and he gets tired very quickly. (‘Reug Reug’) showed in the fight with (Kirill) Grishenko that he has a weak character. He could not keep on fighting. That’s why I think it will be easy for ‘Buchecha’ to win this match.”
“Sladkiy” has left a trail of destruction in his wake since joining the ONE roster in 2021. He has crushed all five opponents inside the distance, netting the heavyweight and light heavyweight straps along the way.
There are few contenders left at heavyweight who haven’t felt Malykhin’s wrath, but Almeida could put himself into strong contention to challenge for the crown if he adds to his perfect 4-0 slate this weekend.
Should the Brazilian jiu-jitsu great do that, “Sladkiy” makes it clear that he would like their fight to happen, and he’s interested in doing it when ONE returns to the U.S. next year.
“If ‘Buchecha’ still wants to be undefeated then he doesn’t need to call me out yet. I think this fight should be hyped; this fight should take place in America next year. It’s going to be a big main event for America,” he said.
“Why am I interested in it? Because he’s undefeated. Because everybody thinks he’s the best jiu-jitsu fighter in the world. Everybody thinks he’s a threat to me, but I don’t think so. I think it’s going to be a good media fight, but I will win early and I will finish by knockout.
“One day, I will be happy to share the ring with him. It will be a good fight for me and for him, and then the best will win, as they say.”
ONE Fight Night 13 will be broadcast live and free on Prime Video for fans across North America with an Amazon subscription.
