Fabricio Andrade says three-division king Anatoly Malykhin innately blessed with KO power: "He's just naturally strong"
Aside from the 14 men whom he has knocked out in his professional career, Anatoly Malykhin's incredible power is being testified by his teammate Fabricio Andrade.
Andrade spoke with Sportskeeda MMA about a bunch of things. At one of the junctures of the discussion, he was asked about the power of Malykhin, who made history by becoming the first athlete in ONE Championship to capture three world titles in three divisions.
'Wonder Boy' certified this by saying:
"Speaking about his knockout power, yeah, he's just naturally strong. He's got that punch power. So yeah."
Malykhin kept his immaculate record and finish rate intact after stopping Reinier de Ridder in the main event of ONE 166: Qatar on March 1 inside the Lusail Sports Arena. In doing so, he secured his third 26-pound golden belt.
Before this groundbreaking achievement, 'Sladkiy' knocked out 'The Dutch Knight' in their first meeting in December 2022 at ONE on Prime Video 5 to win the ONE light heavyweight MMA world title. He also unified the ONE heavyweight MMA world title with a third-round TKO triumph over Arjan Bhullar.
Fabricio Andrade, though, fell short of becoming a two-sport world champion after receiving his first ONE Championship loss at the hands of Jonathan Haggerty in November 2023 at ONE Fight Night 16 through a second-round knockout.
Fabricio Andrade says that Anatoly Malykhin is not only a great champion but also a great person
Fabricio Andrade previously claimed that the Russian knockout artist's greatness is not only limited inside the cage or ring but also outside of it, due to his great personality and his ability to make those around him happy.
The 26-year-old Brazilian star also issued a warning to his South Korean rival Kwon Won Il, who called him out during his post-fight interview in January and reminded him of his knockout finish over him in June 2023 at ONE 158, where he only needed 62 seconds to beat him.
North American viewers with an active Prime Video subscription can rewatch all the action from ONE 166: Qatar via the free event replay.