Anatoly Malykhin is now a ONE Championship title-holder – and US$100,000 richer. The 34-year-old Russian returned to action in the main event of ONE: Bad Blood on Friday in Singapore, where he took on towering Belarusian Kirill Grishenko with the promotion’s interim heavyweight title on the line. He won the fight with a vicious, second-round knockout. The performance was so impressive that he became the first fighter in ONE Championship history to receive two US$50,000 bonuses for a single fight. “Mr Chatri, thank you,” Malykhin said through his translator in a post-fight interview with commentator Mitch Chilson, expressing gratitude to ONE chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong for the double bonus. BOOM 💥 Anatoly Malykhin 🇷🇺 knocks out Kirill Grishenko with a looping right hook to become the ONE Interim Heavyweight World Champion! #ONEBadBlood #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship pic.twitter.com/ZxCmPd5ZYG — ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) February 11, 2022 “I would like to thank my father, my mother, my wife, my son – they’re all watching me today – and my club, Tiger [Muay Thai].” Malykhin pressed the action early, winging massive hooks at his Belarusian foe and scoring with a takedown in the first round. Grishenko was savvy enough to survive the opening frame, but was not so lucky in the second, when he was cut down by a thunderous right hook. It was a feel-good moment for Malykhin, who noted in his post-fight interview that he comes from humble beginnings. “I was a regular guy who trained in the basement,” he said. “Thanks to all the efforts I made and thanks to my belief in myself, I got this belt.” ONE Championship elected to create an interim heavyweight title amid a prolonged contract dispute with the division’s undisputed champion, Indian-Canadian wrestler Arjan Bhullar. According to Chatri, that contract turmoil has been resolved, clearing the way for a cage-shaking heavyweight title unification bout between Malykhin and Bhullar. “Arjan Bhullar, my baby chicken,” the Russian said in English after his victory, targeting the undisputed champ. “No fight. No big heart.” “Come fight,” he added. With his win over Grishenko, Malykhin (11-0) is now 3-0 in ONE Championship. In his first two fights in the organisation, he picked up knockout wins over Alexandre Machado and Amir Aliakbari. Heavyweight champ Bhullar finally agrees new ONE deal The 30-year-old Grishenko (5-1) had never been beaten before ONE: Bad Blood. He won his first two bouts with the organisation, defeating Oumar Kane by stoppage and Dustin Joynson by decision. Bhullar (11-1), 34, became the division’s undisputed champion in May of 2021, when he defeated Brandon Vera by second-round TKO. He debuted with ONE Championship in 2019, defeating Italy’s Mauro Cerilli by unanimous decision.