The 93-pound title bout between Malykhin and de Ridder will be the main event of ONE 166, which will take place March 1 in Lusail, Qatar, the Asian league officially announced.
Last December, the Russian fighter stripped de Ridder of his ONE FC light heavyweight title by winning the fight by technical knockout in the first round, and in June of this year Anatoly Malykhin successfully unified the current and interim ONE FC heavyweight titles by finishing Arjan Bullard by technical knockout in the third round.
Prior to the loss to the Russian, Rainier de Ridder knew no defeats and was on a streak of sixteen wins, fourteen of which he got early. For “Dutch Knight” the fight with “Sweet” will be an immediate rematch.