"Truly the baddest man on the planet" - Fans put Anatoly Malykhin on a pedestal after claiming a third world title in Qatar

MMA superstar Anatoly Malykhin is still receiving legendary treatment from fans after they rewatched him claim his third world title on Instagram this week. From our vantage point, it's become obvious that Anatoly Malykhin is a rare specimen of the fighting arts.

Despite being considered too short or too small to be a heavyweight, Malykhin reminds us that height or size cannot impede you from pursuing your dreams. But rather, it's the amount of effort you put into the gym every day that will determine how far you can go.

Over the years, 'Sladkiy' proved that hard work truly pays dividends, no matter how much talent you might initially have.

Malykhin took on the best heavyweights in his division before unifying his belt against Arjan Bhullar for the 225-pound strap in 2023.

Before that, he defeated one of the most fearsome grapplers of this generation, Reinier de Ridder, for his ONE light heavyweight belt in 2022.

Then, he surprised us even further by claiming his third consecutive gold under the middleweight category to beat de Ridder again in their thrilling rematch in Qatar last March.

This week on Instagram, ONE Championship reminds us that there is absolutely nothing stopping Anatoly Malykhin from overcoming the next hurdle that comes in his way: he is "truly the baddest man on the planet."

Before you watch highlights of his last world title mash-up against Reinier de Ridder at ONE: Qatar, check out the best fan reactions of his work below:

Fan reactions

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"I see two options" - Anatoly Malykhin sees two potential heavyweight fights taking place in the near future

Anatoly Malykhin is mentally preparing for the eventual prospect of fighting two very dangerous heavyweights who are currently making waves in the stacked division.

At the top we have Amir Aliakbari, a technical power-hitter with an excellent wrestling foundation. He recently captured his fourth straight win against former heavyweight world titleholder Arjan Bhullar in a bid to fight Malykhin again in a rematch for the divisional gold.

Second, there's 'Reug Reug' Oumar Kane. The lethal dynamo is coming off of three big performances within the last few years. But its his unrestrained three-rounder against BJJ superstar Marcus Almeida that has really caught the attention of the champion.

Therefore, Malykhin concludes that if there's anyone who deserves a shot at the world title, it's these two warriors.

"At the moment, I see two options," he began telling ONE, "it's 'Reug Reug' [Oumar Kane] or [Amir] Aliakbari. I don't know which one."