Two-weight ONE world champion Anatoly Malykhin (12-0) has put together a trail of destruction in his ONE Championship run that has established him as one of the very best fighters on the planet.
The intern heavyweight titleholder will look to continue that reign of dominance when he faces divisional king Arjan Bhullar (11-1) in a ONE heavyweight world title unification grudge match at ONE Friday Fights 22 on June 23.
As the clock ticks down to the blockbuster event inside the historic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, we break down three reasons why Malykhin might just be the most dangerous fighter in the world.
1. He has devastating punching power
No one can claim the label of “baddest man on the planet” without having the power to knock opponents out with one punch – and Malykhin has that in spades.
Since debuting in ONE in 2021, the Russian powerhouse has stopped all four of his foes, and only one of those has taken him beyond the opening round.
That win came in the second round against Belarusian brawler Kirill Grishenko in February 2022 and netted Malykhin the ONE interim heavyweight world title.
Even in a heavyweight division littered with powerful strikers, Malykhin stands out as the most ferocious.
2. He has no obvious weakness
Malykhin isn’t just a power puncher; he can wrestle too.
The 35-year-old honed his ground game on the notoriously competitive Russian freestyle wrestling circuit from a young age, and he won national medals and Master of Sports honors while doing it.
Those wrestling skills pushed “Sladkiy” to claim submission victories in four of his first six professional fights before he joined ONE.
And his wrestling skills have only become more evident in The Home of Martial Arts.
Faced with one of MMA’s best grapplers in then two-division world champion Reinier de Ridder, Malykhin effortlessly shrugged off the takedown attempts of “The Dutch Knight” to record a blistering one-round demolition.
The win added the ONE light heavyweight world title to the Kemerovo native’s collection and improved his perfect professional record to 12-0.
With no clear weakness, it’s hard to see how any opponent will take Malykhin’s “0”.
3. Two-division dominance
After laying waste to three of ONE’s top heavyweights, Malykhin’s move down to the light heavyweight division to face de Ridder was met with shock and skepticism.
But the interim heavyweight king made weight without issue, and the drop in pounds didn’t affect his performance in the slightest, as he crushed the previously undefeated Dutchman.
The title of “baddest man on the planet” is normally reserved for the heaviest fighters. But Malykhin is one of few – if not the only – heavyweights in the game who can comfortably reign over a second division.
