Two-weight ONE MMA World Champion Anatoly Malykhin is on a journey to redesign, rebuild, and come back stronger following his first career defeat in his last ONE Championship outing, and he’s been enjoying it so far.
“Sladkiy” dropped the ONE Heavyweight MMA World Title to “Reug Reug” Oumar Kane after a gruelling five-round affair at ONE 169 this past November, which ended his 14-fight winning streak and pushed him to take time away from competition.
But the hulking Russian is now eyeing a return, and he’s added nearly 40 pounds to his already massive frame in order to be fully prepared.
“I’ve been focusing more on strength and conditioning. I’ve been doing a lot of strength training and working with weights. I bulked up again and hit the numbers I had back when I was fighting at heavyweight,” Malykhin told onefc.com.
“I’ve bulked up. I used to be 100 kilos. Now I’m 117. I’ve been lifting a lot. As for my diet, I switched to keto – I cut out carbs completely. And so far, I feel great.
“I’ve never turned down a fight. If I’m healthy and not injured, I’m in. I’ve always been hungry to fight. There’s no ‘perfect’ date for me. I’m ready whenever ONE needs me.”
Though inactive thus far in 2025, Malykhin has been moving in silence outside of the ring and improving his overall game to deal with the biggest and baddest men in ONE Championship’s heavyweight MMA division.
That said, the 37-year-old has also been focusing on spending time with those closest to him and enjoying his adopted home of Thailand.
“Everything’s been going well in 2025 – just like it did in 2024 and 2023. Life is steady. I’m training, focusing on my family. We love each other deeply as a family,” Malykhin said.
“I really like northern Thailand – Chiang Mai. The nature there, the rivers, the wild jungles, the nature that is so raw, especially when you head up into the mountains. I love nature, and lately, Chiang Mai has really stood out to me.”
