Two-weight ONE champion Anatoly Malykhin revealed in an exclusive interview with Telecomasia.net that a strict diet ahead of his 93 kg bout with Reinier de Ridder affected his performance in the fight against Oumar Kane.
The first warning sign was that I stopped sleeping. Or after naps, my heart would race. I ignored the other signs. Then I started training hard for the fight with Kane, but my body was stressed and dehydrated. I couldn’t gain weight or muscle, couldn’t get back into heavyweight shape. Worse, I couldn’t recover mentally. I didn’t want to train. I forced myself to. At home, I was unhappy. I shut down, stopped answering calls. I was depressed. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.
“Then the fight happened, and everyone knows how it ended. After the loss, I felt nothing. Indifference. And that scared me. I went home, we went to Altai. And only after five months did I slowly recover. I felt a new joy, hunger for achievements. But those six months were tough for my family,” Malykhin said.
On March 1, 2024, Anatoly Malykhin defeated Reinier de Ridder in the 93 kg division. On November 8, 2024, he lost to Oumar Kane by split decision in heavyweight. A rematch with the Senegalese fighter is scheduled for November 16. Malykhin has 14 wins and one loss. Kane has seven wins and one loss.
