Anatoly Malykhin has never been one to mince his words, and the three-weight ONE MMA world champion has made his views of upcoming opponent Oumar Kane clear.
Malykhin defends the heavyweight crown against “Reug Reug” when ONE Championship returns to U.S. soil in Atlanta, Georgia, on Saturday, 9th November at the State Farm Arena.
As world title challengers go, Malykhin isn’t at all impressed by anything Kane brings to the table. First and foremost, he’s concerned about the Senegalese star’s ability to go longer than 15 minutes.
“He’s slow, can’t time punches for the life of him, and his cardio sucks. Three rounds and he’s gassed, and this is a five-rounder,” Malykhin opined.
“‘Reug Reug’ usually falls apart after the first anyway – hands drop, starts grabbing at the opponent’s shorts or gloves. Kind of a dirty fighter, really. No real threat, though.”
Kane has risen through the ranks of ONE Championship. The 32-year-old has defied all critics to amass a three-fight winning streak and earn his first shot at ONE gold.
In his last outing at ONE Fight Night 13 in August 2023, “Reug Reug” took fans by surprise by becoming the first man to defeat 14-time BJJ world champion Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida in the Brazilian’s MMA career.
His impressive wrestling skills make him an intimidating character for most, but Malykhin has the right to fear no man. He has dominated every adversary he has faced in his career to put together a 14-0 slate, and he plans to impress the U.S. fans with another finish on 9th November.
“American fans love knockouts, right? They want a good show, fighters going all out, leaving it all in the cage,” Malykhin stated.
“That’s what I’m going to give them – a knockout, a damn good fight.”