“Our fight will be inevitable” - Shamil Erdogan believes his path will soon collide with triple-champ Anatoly Malykhin
Undefeated Turkish middleweight Shamil Erdogan has his eye on the prize, and can't wait to bust his way up to a world title shot. Erdogan has his sights set on a clash with reigning ONE heavyweight, light heavyweight, and middleweight MMA world champion 'Sladkiy' Anatoly Malykhin, and he has middleweight gold on his mind.
Speaking to ONE Championship in a recent interview, Erdogan says his fight with Malykhin can't come soon enough.
The 34-year-old Turkish fighter stated:
"He is now the champion in my weight class, and if it stays this way, our fight will be inevitable."
Before Erdogan can even think of taking on the Russian mauler, however, he has to first take care of business against an equally dangerous opponent. Shamil Erdogan stakes his undefeated record against former two-division ONE world champion, 'The Burmese Python' Aung La N Sang of Myanmar.
The two lock horns at ONE 168: Denver, which broadcasts live from the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado on Friday, Sept. 6.
Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action live and absolutely free on Amazon Prime Video. Those who want to watch live at the venue can get tickets on Ticketmaster.
Shamil Erdogan says there is no bad blood with Anatoly Malykhin: "I have a good relationship with him"
Despite wanting to take Anatoly Malykhin's middleweight MMA belt eventually, undefeated Shamil Erdogan says he holds no ill will towards the Russian firecracker.
The 34-year-old Turkish fighter says he has a cordial relationship with Malykhin and has competed with him before in the amateur wrestling circuits.
He told ONE Championship:
"I would like to face Anatoly Malykhin. I have a good relationship with him, and I know him from the times when we competed in freestyle wrestling."
Of course, before Erdogan has the chance to face Malykhin, he will need to get past Aung La N Sang at ONE 168: Denver.
Stay tuned to Sportskeeda MMA for all the latest news and updates surrounding the event.