“I wish you all the best” - Bantamweight MMA king Fabricio Andrade shows his support for good friend Anatoly Malykhin at ONE 166

ONE bantamweight MMA world champion Fabricio Andrade is rallying behind Russian powerhouse and good friend Anatoly Malykhin in his bid to add the middleweight gold to his world title haul this week in Qatar.

‘Sladkiy,’ the reigning ONE light heavyweight and heavyweight world champion, will vie for the middleweight belt against divisional king Reinier de Ridder at ONE 166: Qatar on March 1.

The contest will be the headliner of the landmark event taking place at the Lusail Sports Arena and airing to Amazon Prime Video subscribers in North America live and for free.

In an Instagram story, Fabricio Andrade, who has trained with Malykhin at Tiger Muay Thai in Phuket, Thailand, expressed his support for the double ONE world champion in his scheduled title fight.

‘Wonder Boy’ said:

“Anatoly, I want to wish you all the best this weekend. It was a pleasure to be training along with you. You are a symbol of hard work, focus, dedication and big heart. So, I wish you all the best and I know you will do your thing.”

Fabricio Andrade gives his support to Anatoly Malykhin in an Instagram story.

ONE 166 is the first-ever live on-ground event of ONE Championship in Qatar. It is part of the promotion’s push to bring its brand of world-class martial arts action to more people in different parts of the world this year.

Fabricio Andrade looks to make 2024 a banner year

Brazilian MMA champion Fabricio Andrade had an eventful 2023 but is seeking to top it this year by competing in world title fights and winning them.

The 26-year-old Fortaleza native added his name to the roster of ONE world champions by claiming the vacant bantamweight world title in February last year with a fourth-round TKO of former divisional king John Lineker.

Andrade tried to become a two-sport king by vying for the vacant bantamweight kickboxing world title in November, but fell short, knocked out by the division’s Muay Thai champion Jonathan Haggerty in the second round of their title clash.

For the current year, he wants to continue to be part of high-profile fights, including challenging for world titles while also defending his MMA belt.

Andrade told Sportskeeda MMA in an interview:

“I need to go out there and perform like I need to perform, to win belts and win championships. And, of course, defend my title too.”

Prior to his loss to Haggerty, Andrade won his first six matches in ONE Championship.