ONE Welterweight Submission Grappling World Champion Tye Ruotolo knows there is another gear in him when he gets emotional in a match, and he believes his next opponent has the ability to rile him up. 

On Friday, April 5, the American sensation is set to defend his throne against promotional newcomer Izaak Michell in the co-main event of ONE Fight Night 21: Eersel vs. Nicolas inside the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium In Bangkok, Thailand.

Tye Ruotolo is the diamond under pressure

Ruotolo has never shied away from competing against larger opponents, and he has come out on top in every ONE outing so far. This weekend, he will face another foe who’ll have a size advantage, but he feels he thrives in that environment.

“Any time I fight big guys, the last thing I’m worried about is the physicality. I’m just looking for my windows and creating my windows. You saw in my Pedro Marinho match [at ADCC 2022], at one point, it kinda got a little bit heated, and I just remember running toward him and grabbing him as hard as I could,” he told ONE Championship.

Ruotolo’s twin brother, Kade, has been training with him since they could walk and has seen practically every match he’s been in. As such, Kade agreed wholeheartedly with Tye’s assessment of how he’ll handle his next assignment, and he sent a warning to Michell and other potential challengers.

“Trying to punk Tye and be that physical guy to Tye is always the worst game plan. The last thing you want to do is get him emotional. Trying to punk him will get him emotional. If you get him emotional, good luck. Anyone in the world is smoked after that,” Kade said.

Ruotolo will fight back with aggression if he has to

Tye is known to be calm and collected in his matches, which helps him find the openings for submissions. But he says fighting mad unlocks another level of his game, and he’s looking forward to bringing that aggression against Michell. 

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“Anyone who makes me emotional or wants to fight hard, get in my face, I definitely like it, and I can pull it out. It’s deep inside me. I can’t just pull it out all the time. But when someone makes me mad, it’s good,” he said.  Understanding his opponent’s style, the welterweight submission grappling king is convinced that he will get fired up at some point during their match.

Given this, he offered a potential preview of what fans could see when he collides with Michell inside the ring this Friday. “I think it’s going to be a war the first couple of minutes. I think he’s going to come forward, and I think he’s going to use his physicality a lot. One hundred percent, he’s going to make me mad, so I’m really excited,” he said. ONE Fight Night 21 will be broadcast live and free on Prime Video for fans across North America with an active Amazon subscription. 

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