Ben Tynan is one of the rising superstars in ONE Championship. The heavyweight fighter made his ONE debut on November 3, 2023, against Ji Wong Kang. Tynan won the bout in the third round via an arm-triangle submission. He will look to replicate the same against Duke Didier on ONE Fight Night 21. The event will be headlined by grappling sensation Tye Ruotolo, who will take on Izaak Michell.
Ben has a very interesting nickname, which also suits his personality. He is affectionately known as the “Vanilla Thunder.” His blonde hair and energetic fighting style make Tynan a fan favorite. Elite heavyweight fighters are hard to come by and Tynan’s rise to the limelight is a good thing for the world of MMA. And, in a recent interview with ONE, Ben has shown the much-needed confidence that will help him take the next step.
However, his next opponent is not a slouch by any means. While the Australian fighter Duke Didier (8-2) lost his last bout against Jasur Mirzamukhamedov, it was a close matchup that ended in a split decision. Before that, Duke defeated David Taumoepeau and Jeff King back to back. The 34-year-old has only 2 losses in his career and neither came via stoppage.
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Assessing Didier, Ben added, “He seems like he’s a decent grappler. You know? It seems like he’s got maybe something of a clinch, and I’ll give him that, it looks decent enough. But yeah, besides that, I don’t know. I don’t want to be too cocky, but I think I could… I’m going to take this guy’s head off.”
As for his prediction for the result, Tynan has envisioned a “first-round finish.” Although the 30-year-old is not taking his Aussie opponent lightly, Ben Tynan already has one eye on the future. The question is, where does Tynan envision his career going? He is seemingly gunning for the most dominant ONE fighter in recent times.
Ben Tynan wants to fight Anatoly Malykhin
Anatoly Malykhin recently made at ONE 166: Qatar. He took on Reinier de Ridder in the main event of the show and the Russian made easy work of the Dutch fighter. Anatoly made his middleweight debut with the bout, and he defeated de Ridder at the 1:16 minute mark of the third round to grab the divisional belt. With the win, he also made history as Anatoly now holds the middleweight, light heavyweight, and heavyweight titles.
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However, Ben Tynan is confident about getting the job done in a potential bout against Malykhin. He added, “I think he’s pretty small to be a heavyweight. He’s definitely as tough as nails. But yeah, I don’t even know what he’s going to do, and now he holds three belts. If he comes back to heavyweight, that’d be great. But yeah, he’s a pretty small guy. No, I think I could beat him up, but also I think I could beat most of these guys up.”
The potential matchup is not happening in the immediate future and Ben is well aware of it. But, in the interview, Tynan is confident about gaining more and more fame and becoming a major draw. The grappler termed his charisma as the “Vanilla Thunderstorm” and his love for socially relevant commodities such as Pokemon, makes him a relatable character too. Ben even got a Charizard tattoo recently and he seems really proud of it.
What are your thoughts on the fighter? Let us know in the comments below.