“You haven’t seen the best of me” - New heavyweight MMA king ‘Reug Reug’ reflects on his journey from Senegal to world title glory
He may have done the unthinkable, but Oumar 'Reug Reug' Kane is confident that what he did at ONE 169 was just the start of his reign of terror.
The Senegalese wrestling machine scored a stunning upset win to dethrone Anatoly Malykhin of the ONE heavyweight MMA world title in the card's main event this past weekend at the historic Lumpinee Stadium.
Kane captured the gold via split decision following a grueling five-round matchup against the Russian knockout machine in Bangkok.
Taking to Instagram after his world title win, 'Reug Reug' reflected on his journey from a small fishing village in Senegal to becoming the new ONE heavyweight MMA world champion.
He also promised that what he did was just the beginning of his career's new chapter.
Kane wrote:
"Thank you all, this is just the beginning, you haven't seen the best of me. A young boy from a small fishing city Thiaroye Sur Mer in Senegal 🇸🇳 With inspiration to show the younger generation in Africa and worldwide to always believe in your dreams and work hard and you can achieve anything."
Kane was the first man to beat Malykhin in MMA and became the first MMA world champion of Senegalese descent.
The 32-year-old also improved his professional MMA record to 7-1 and pushed his winning streak to four fights.
Malykhin, meanwhile, is still a two-division MMA world champion and holds the ONE middleweight and light heavyweight MMA world titles.
Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada can watch the entire ONE 169 card on free replay and on demand.
Anatoly Malykhin aims for an immediate rematch against 'Reug Reug' for heavyweight MMA throne
Anatoly Malykhin doesn't want his first professional loss to fester for long in his previously unblemished record.
'Sladkiy' is determined to recapture the ONE heavyweight MMA world title from Oumar 'Reug Reug' Kane and refill his stacked trophy cabinet to the top shelf.
In an interview with ONE Championship, Malykhin said a rematch could transpire early next year but nothing has been officially confirmed.
He said:
"Absolutely. I hope it happens soon. Matchmakers mentioned it might be in March, but the rematch isn't confirmed yet; it's still about 50/50."