Anatoly Malykhin knew Bo Nickal had ‘zero chance’ against former ONE champ Reinier de Ridder

Reigning and undisputed ONE light heavyweight and middleweight MMA world champion, and former heavyweight MMA king Anatoly Malykhin of Russia has been all praise as of late for former opponent Reinier de Ridder.

De Ridder, a former two-division world champ in ONE Championship, joined the UFC late last year, and is off to a hot start with a perfect 3-0 clip. Notable victories have come over Gerald Meerschaert, Kevin Holland, and most recently, Bo Nickal.

Speaking to Lowkick MMA in a recent interview, Malykhin shared his thoughts on de Ridder's victory over Nickal just a couple of weeks ago.

'Sladkiy' said:

"I gave Bo zero chance and was sure De Ridder would handle him easily. I’d say this: Reinier de Ridder is a fighter who can become champion in any league."

De Ridder was the former ONE middleweight and light heavyweight MMA world champion in ONE Championship.

But it was Malykhin who dethroned the Dutchman, taking both of his belts to become a three-division MMA titleholder in the world's largest martial arts organization.

Needless to say, Malykhin appears to have much respect for 'The Dutch Knight', despite the latter moving on to another promotion.

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Anatoly Malykhin says Bo Nickal was simply no match for Reinier de Ridder: "He stepped in there against a two-division ONE champion"

'Sladkiy' Anatoly Malykhin believes Bo Nickal was simply poorly matched up against such an accomplished fighter in Reinier de Ridder.

After all, de Ridder held two titles simultaneously in ONE Championship before leaving the organization.

Malykhin told Lowkick MMA:

"You know what I’ll say, who is Bo Nickal, really? He stepped in there against a two-division ONE champion, against a guy who’s finished some very serious opponents. Bo is just a hyped-up fighter. Reinier de Ridder is a real champion."