WATCH: Grappling master Reinier de Ridder lets his hands go in heated middleweight matchup against Leandro Ataides

Reinier de Ridder has had more than a couple of standout victories throughout his ONE Championship career, and it was his third bout that had fans considering him to be a future ONE MMA world champion.

In February 2020, ‘The Dutch Knight’ was paired with Leandro Ataides as part of ONE: Warrior’s Code for his third bout within the promotion.

Prior to the bout, de Ridder was already a standout fighter in ONE Championship’s densely stacked roster as soon as he arrived in 2019, with his D’Arce choke submission of Fan Rong and knockout of Gilberto Galvao being head-turners.

Ataides presented de Ridder with a different kind of fighter, as the Brazilian can get into firefights himself while also being a threat on the ground with his decorated Brazilian jiu-jitsu resume.

He significantly slowed down the matchup to force de Ridder to reevaluate his game plan, and the Dutch star wore down Ataides with his constant pressure, eventually winning the bout via unanimous decision after an action-filled contest.

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Reinier de Ridder to rematch Anatoly Malykhin at ONE 166

Fans will once again get to see de Ridder defend his ONE middleweight MMA world championship as he and heated rival Anatoly Malykhin will be headlining ONE 166 on March 1 happening inside the Lusail Sports Arena in Qatar.

The last time they fought was for the ONE light heavyweight MMA world championship, and Malykhin pulled out all the stops to defeat de Ridder in stunning fashion in December of 2022.

There is concern among many vocal fans that Malykhin, the ONE light heavyweight and heavyweight MMA world champion, will be unable to make the middleweight limit, though ‘Sladkiy’ shared that he is going to leave the refrigerator alone for a while.

Check your local listings or ONE Championship’s website for how to watch ONE 166 from your location.