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Former two-division MMA world champion Reinier de Ridder suffered a devastating loss at the hands of Anatoly Malykhin during their champion-versus-champion showdown in December 2022 at ONE on Prime Video 5.
However, the Breda native is now plotting his revenge against ‘Sladkiy,’ as they are scheduled for a rematch on March 1 at ONE 166: Qatar.
‘The Dutch Knight’ will welcome the Russian knockout artist to the middleweight division as they will be vying for the de Riddier's middleweight title inside the Lusail Sports Arena.
In his most recent ONE Championship interview, Reinier de Ridder shared that he has fortified his mental game and tweaked his approach for their second meeting.
The Combat Brothers athlete said:
“Another thing that’s really important to me is my mental game. I’ve really looked inward a lot over the last year. I’ve really tried to make some changes in the way I approach the fight, the way I view myself as a fighter.”
Before that first defeat under the world’s largest martial arts organization, de Ridder was an unstoppable force in the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions, where he finished five of his seven opponents.
Included on his victim list were Fan Rong, Gilberto Galvao, Leandro Ataides, Aung La N Sang (twice), Kiamrian Abbasov, and Vitaly Bigdash.
Reinier de Ridder wants to prove that he is not just a submission specialist
Despite being an elite grappler due to his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Judo background, Reinier de Ridder wants to show that he is not just a one-trick pony and put his striking skills on display come fight night.
In fact, the 33-year-old Dutch world champion displayed this power during his second match in ONE Championship, when he scored a second-round TKO finish over Gilberto Galvao using his lethal knees that finished the Brazilian.
ONE 166: Qatar is available on pay-per-view at watch.onefc.com. Check your local listing for more details.
