Anatoly “Sladkiy” Malykhin is confident there will be a new ONE Middleweight World Champion crowned by the time ONE 159: De Ridder vs. Bigdash concludes on July 22.

The ONE Interim Heavyweight World Champion has been working closely with challenger Vitaly Bigdash to prepare him for his World Title tilt against two-division king Reinier “The Dutch Knight” de Ridder.

Based on what he has seen, Malykhin is sure that the former ONE Middleweight World Champion has enough in his arsenal to both reclaim the gold from the unbeaten Dutchman and earn a bit of extra cash when they square off inside the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

“Vitaly came to us in Tiger Muay Thai in Thailand to finish his preparation for the fight with De Ridder. I personally work with him daily. He is a very tough guy,” he said.

“I think Vitaly will confidently win this fight. He won’t give in to [de Ridder’s] wrestling, will strike well, defend the takedown well, and will land his new ONE Championship belt. And I think he will grab a bonus as well.”

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Snatching the strap will be far from a walk in the park, however.

Malykhin understands how complete the Breda native is in all aspects of his game. “The Dutch Knight” has secured his spotless record of 15-0 by using his world-class grappling and reliable striking every time he steps onto the global stage, and he will undoubtedly do the same in his upcoming World Title defense.

Anatoly Malykhin expects a dominant performance from his compatriot at ONE 159

Malykhin predicts that his fellow countryman can find a flaw within De Ridder’s near-perfect arsenal, though. And when he does, “Sladkiy” sees Bigdash dominating “The Dutch Knight” throughout the main event showdown.

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“Watch all of Vitaly’s fights. They are very spectacular, almost all ending with a knockout. Vitaly always hunts for a good knockout,” he pointed out.

“As for De Ridder, I don’t think we’ll see anything new. He will show an unspectacular fight trying to take him to the ground and bind him up. Our hope is that Vitaly will drop him beautifully.”

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Anything can happen when these two warriors go to war inside the ONE Circle for the middleweight crown.

Bigdash’s all-around skill set could secure another stint as the divisional king. But if de Ridder stays razor-sharp in his quest to defend his gold, the fired-up Russian could be in for a long night at ONE 159 on July 22.