ONE Heavyweight MMA World Champion is supremely confident heading into his hotly anticipated rematch with ONE Middleweight and Light Heavyweight MMA World Champion .
It was that Kane will defend his heavyweight gold against Malykhin on November 16 at at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan.
“Reug Reug” shocked the martial arts world when he wrested the heavyweight MMA crown from the seemingly invincible Russian last year at via split decision. Now, the pride of Senegal is eager to prove that his victory was no fluke.
The titleholder’s confidence stems from how comfortable he felt during their first encounter. Despite Malykhin’s unbeaten record and 100 percent finishing rate, Kane said that he never felt truly threatened.
“Reug Reug” recently spoke to about that previous matchup:
“Everybody said Anatoly is good. He is very good. He has striking. His boxing is very good. But I am Oumar, you know? Oumar is number one. He hit me some, but I have African power. He hit me, and I felt nothing. In my mind, I said, ‘Yo, keep going.'”
The former Senegalese Wrestling Champion believes Malykhin was too focused on avoiding his world-class grappling last time out. He feels this singular focus prevented his rival from fully utilizing his own skill set during the fight.
But while his opponents, including Malykhin, often devise game plans around avoiding his wrestling, Kane wants fans to know that he’s much more than a grappler:
“Anatoly, I think he thought about the wrestling too much. But it’s normal. When somebody comes to fight Oumar, you think about wrestling. But I have more than just wrestling, man. I have boxing, I have jiu-jitsu, I have everything, bro. I train hard.
“Every fight, I’m going to do something new. I’m always a new and improved fighter every fight. I’ve been training MMA for four years only. So that’s why I’m improving every time. I’m unlocking a new skill every time.”
With his rapid and unprecedented evolution as a fighter, “Reug Reug” is supremely confident about the outcome of his rematch with Malykhin.
Unlike their five-round war last year, he’s not planning for a lengthy battle. Instead, he’s predicting a decisive stoppage within the first 15 minutes:
“When I fight Anatoly again, it’s not going to last more than three rounds. I’m telling you. Three rounds is as far as it goes.
“It could be over in two rounds with a finish, and three rounds is the most. Third round will be the last round, I’m telling you.”
Bad Blood And Mutual Respect
The buildup to the first fight between Oumar Kane and Anatoly Malykhin was marked by no shortage of animosity. The two had a heated scuffle during pre-fight media obligations and traded harsh words on social media.
The Senegalese superstar acknowledged that emotions run high in this business, and he’s prepared for whatever psychological warfare his opponent might carry into the rematch:
“This is a fight, you know? It’s normal. I’m ready for everything Anatoly will bring. I know he’s gonna come for me, he’s going to push me, he’s gonna talk rubbish. I know all that.”
Despite those exchanges before their first bout, Kane revealed that most of the animosity disappeared once the fight had ended.
He has tremendous respect for his opponents after the battle is over, and he even shared a moment of mutual admiration with Malykhin following their first encounter:
“I respect everybody after the fight is finished. I respect everybody from my first fight to my last fight. This is the fight game. After the fight is finished, we are fine.
“We haven’t talked to each other since the fight. After the fight was finished, I went to the hotel and he said, ‘African power. You have power. It’s your time.'”
