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Throughout his time in ONE Championship, Reinier de Ridder has proved that he isn’t afraid to seek out the biggest challenges. At ONE on Prime Video 5, he will defend his ONE light heavyweight world championship against the ONE interim heavyweight world champion Anatoly Malykhin.
The entire event is live and free for North American viewers with a Prime subscription.
In his seven fights in ONE Championship, De Ridder has shown that he will take on anyone. After racking up two world title defenses of his ONE middleweight world championship this year, he is now set to face arguably his most dangerous opponent yet.
This doesn’t faze Reinier de Ridder, though, one bit. ‘The Dutch Knight’ wants the biggest challenges available and has been on a run of taking out current and former world champions.
In an interview with The MMA Superfan, De Ridder spoke about using his upcoming fight as a test run for a potential move to the heavyweight division. With Malykhin usually competing in the weight class above – but dropping down for this fight – it will be a good opportunity for the defending two-division world champion to see how he matches up against a bigger opponent.
He said:
“Yeah, why not? We'll see afterward. Let me get through this one first. For me, the important thing is the thing in my mind, just to show myself that I can do this, just to show myself that I can be the heavyweight champion as well. That's what I'm looking for.”
Watch the full interview below:
“It’s always me on top” – Reinier de Ridder relishes the opportunity to be an MMA superstar
Since his arrival in ONE Championship, Reinier de Ridder has become a star in the promotion. Debuting in 2019, ‘The Dutch Knight’ has gone unbeaten in a spectacular run that has seen him become the ONE middleweight and light heavyweight world champion.
Through his performances alone, De Ridder has become one of ONE’s biggest names on the roster. In his return to the circle for the final time this year, Reinier de Ridder will headline one of the biggest cards of the year.
In an appearance on Morning Kombat, De Ridder spoke about his new level of fame within MMA and what it means to him:
“It’s cool man, it’s very cool. Look at a card... like the card I’m on this time, there’s a lot of big names on there. And for some reason, it’s always me on top [headlining]. So it’s pretty special to be the main guy, to have that in my life is very cool. It’s very special.”
As the reigning and defending double world champion, De Ridder will look to keep his incredible run going on December 2 (US primetime) by defending his light heavyweight belt. With one eye on the heavyweight division, the Dutchman’s stock could be set to rise even further.
Watch the entire interview below:
