‘I Will Finish Him’ – Anatoly Malykhin Promises Explosive Ending To World Title Rematch With Reug Reug
Two-division MMA king Anatoly “Sladkiy” Malykhin has taken his time returning to the global stage, but the extended absence has only sharpened his knockout intentions.
The Russian powerhouse will finally step back into the ONE Championship ring at The Inner Circle on Friday, May 15, where he will challenge reigning ONE Heavyweight MMA World Champion “Reug Reug” Oumar Kane in a highly anticipated rematch for the division’s crown.
That match will headline the card, which streams exclusively on live.onefc.com from Bangkok’s Lumpinee Stadium.
The blockbuster rematch was originally slated for ONE 173 in Tokyo last November, but the Senegalese titleholder was injured in an unexpected car accident in Dubai, which forced the bout to be postponed.
For a fighter as aggressively competitive as the Russian superstar, an extended period away from the action could have been a difficult mental obstacle to hurdle. Instead, Malykhin – the reigning ONE Middleweight and Light Heavyweight MMA World Champion – has used the extra time to lock himself in the gym and fine-tune his destructive capabilities.
“Sladkiy” understands the date on the calendar matters far less than the blood, sweat, and daily grind of his preparation.
He told onefc.com:
“For me, delays are nothing unusual. Whether ‘Reug Reug’ got injured or something else happened, it doesn’t really change anything for me. I just keep training, keep preparing, and keep living my dream. I’m always in shape. Martial arts is my life.
“I’m not the kind of fighter who only trains for a fight and then relaxes when there’s no opponent. I don’t switch off. I stay focused all the time. For me, it’s simple – I truly love what I do.”
When Malykhin and Kane first clashed at ONE 169 in November 2024, they delivered an unforgettable 25-minute war that ended in a razor-close split-decision verdict favoring the Senegalese wrestling sensation. That result marked the very first blemish on the Russian’s professional record, and it stripped him of his heavyweight MMA crown and his status as a three-division ONE World Champion.
In the months since that fateful night, the bad blood between the two titans has reached a boiling point. “Reug Reug” recently fanned the flames of the rivalry by publicly dismissing the 38-year-old’s storied knockout power, claiming he casually walked through “Sladkiy’s” best shots and ate his left hook “like it was easy.”
Malykhin immediately shot down that narrative, pointing to the visual evidence from their grueling five-round battle:
“You can’t ignore my knockout power. I’ve finished all my opponents, and he’s next. If he says he ‘ate my left hook’ and didn’t feel it, there’s a photo that says otherwise. His lips were flying about 20 centimeters away from his face. That’s the reality.”
While “Reug Reug” boasts about his durability and has boldly promised to secure a highlight-reel stoppage of his own in their rematch, Malykhin views his rival’s striking threats as completely hollow.
Analyzing the granular details of their first encounter, the Russian notes that Kane’s actual in-ring tactics do not match his aggressive trash talk.
Malykhin said:
“He should relax a little. He hasn’t even knocked out his opponents, so talking about finishing me sounds strange. He’s not a powerful striker. He spends most of the fight backing up and hiding.
“I didn’t finish him in the first fight, but I will finish him in this one. The biggest lesson I learned? Don’t leave it to the judges. Finish the fight.”
That said, Malykhin, who represents One Chance Team and Tiger Muay Thai, is not one to underestimate his foes. He openly acknowledges the crucial missteps that cost him the heavyweight gold.
After analyzing his own performance at ONE 169, the Russian veteran realized he had drifted away from the foundational grappling that made him such an unstoppable force.
To guarantee that history does not repeat itself, he has completely stripped his training camp back to the brutal basics.
He added:
“As for me, I got smarter. I made adjustments to my preparation – more focus on wrestling, more MMA sparring. In the last fight, I moved slightly away from that system. Now, I’ve brought back my old system, hard training. I didn’t reinvent anything. I just returned to what made me strong.
“I’m not a different fighter. I’m the same Anatoly. The only thing is I’ve brought back my old, hard training, and I’m more focused now. There are no big changes. I took time to rest and recover, and now, I’m ready to show my power again.”
Malykhin Predicts Emphatic First-Round Vengeance
Despite the mounting tension and heated verbal exchanges, Anatoly Malykhin understands the sheer value of sharing the ONE Championship ring with a world-class adversary.
Every great champion needs an immovable challenger to push them to their absolute limits, and Malykhin agrees with Kane’s recent assessment that their feud is exactly the spark the heavyweight MMA division needs.
In fact, the Russian knockout artist is already plotting a massive, cross-continent storyline that ends deep in enemy territory.
He explained:
“Absolutely, this is a great rivalry for the heavyweight division. Two fighters who can both strike and wrestle, that’s what makes it exciting for the fans.
“I believe this is just the beginning of something big. First, I will knock him out now. Then, we can create something like the ‘Thrilla in Manila’ – a real trilogy. And after that, I’ll knock him out again in Africa, in front of his own crowd.”
But before that conversation can go any further, Malykhin must reclaim the belt on May 15. True to his reputation, the Russian slugger is not preparing for another drawn-out, 25-minute chess match. He is walking into The Inner Circle with one singular, explosive objective.
If he successfully dethrones Kane and takes back the heavyweight MMA crown, the multiple-division king is fully prepared to jump right back into the fire to defend his gold.
This time, however, “Sladkiy” is going for the jugular, and he is confident he won’t miss.
Malykhin said:
“I’m preparing to knock him out. That’s always my goal. The fans know it. That’s why they come to watch my fights. In this fight, I’ll stay calm, stay sharp, and look for the finish. And I’ll get it in the first round, like always.
“After I beat ‘Reug Reug,’ I’m ready to fight at [225 pounds] again. If there’s a strong opponent, I’m open to defending my belt. My weight is not a problem. I can make [weight] very easily. Right now, my focus is this fight, but I’m ready for anything next.”
