Anatoly Malykhin MMA: WATCH: Russian champ-champ Anatoly Malykhin showcases pure brutish power in concussive KO finish of Amir Aliakbari

Reigning ONE light heavyweight and middleweight MMA world champion Anatoly Malykhin has an appetite for destruction that can only be satisfied by knocking out his opponents. That is precisely what he did in September 2021 at ONE: Revolution.

Fresh off a first-round TKO over Alexandre Machado in his promotional debut that March, 'Sladkiy' was now tasked to overcome Iranian monster Amir Aliakbari.

In an Instagram video shared by the promotion, this clash of titans ended in Malykhin's favor at the 2:57 mark of round one, thanks to an excellent three-punch combination that sent Aliakbari looking up at the lights.

Watch the entire video below:

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By posting back-to-back finishes to start his ONE tenure, Malykhin earned a spot to battle Kirill Grishenko in February 2022 over the ONE interim heavyweight MMA world championship. Malykhin finished him at the 3:42 mark of round two. Later that December, he knocked out two-sport king Reinier de Ridder in the first round to win the ONE light heavyweight MMA world championship.

Malykhin unified the heavyweight MMA gold by stopping then-reigning 265-pound MMA king Arjan Bhullar in June 2023. Then in March of the following year, he dominated 'The Dutch Knight' again to take the ONE light heavyweight MMA world championship and become the first-ever three-division MMA king in ONE history.

Anatoly Malykhin zeroed in on rematching Oumar Kane

It has been five months since Anatoly Malykhin lost the undisputed ONE heavyweight MMA world championship to Oumar Kane at ONE 169. Despite fans discussing a possible showdown with Shamil Erdogan, Malykhin made it clear that a rematch with 'Reug Reug' is the only thing he wants right now.

Speaking exclusively with the world's largest martial arts promotion, the Golden Team product declared:

"Right now, my focus is on the heavyweight division. My main goal is getting my rematch with my friend, Oumar Kane."

About the author

Karl has been an MMA writer at Sportskeeda since 2023. He holds a Bachelor of Arts major in history, which helps him pay attention to the finer details while writing, and also has first-hand experience in boxing. He has a total experience of 5 years, and has worked for the International Business Times.

Karl turned into an MMA fan back in 2011 after watching Tito Ortiz defeat Ryan Bader via first-round submission at UFC 132. He has interviewed ONE world champions like Eduard Folayang, Joshua Pacio, Stamp Fairtex, and Tawanchai in his career so far.

On the non-MMA side of things, he interviewed WWE superstar Matt Riddle in 2021 and his question about Roman Reigns elicited an interesting answer which was widely covered by outlets like Sportskeeda and Cultaholic Wrestling's YouTube channel. He has also interviewed NBA stars Dwight Howard, Nick Young, Andre Roberson, Shabazz Muhammad, Jason Williams and Brian Scalabrine plus Filipino women's volleyball star Alyssa Valdez.

Karl ensures to double-check facts before using them in articles, and reads up on potential topics for pieces a day before. In his off time, he likes to play video games, and keep up with basketball and pro wrestling.

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Edited by Tejas Rathi