Tye Ruotolo Gets His Wish Granted as First World Title Defense Against Izaak Michell at ONE 166: Qatar Gets Confirmed

Tye Ruotolo will get to test himself as a World Champion for the first time in ONE Championship at the promotion’s debut show in the Middle East.

The American grappling prodigy will defend the ONE Welterweight Submission Grappling World Championship against Australian superstar Izaak Michell at ONE 166: Qatar inside the Lusail Sports Arena on Friday, March 1. 

Tye Ruotolo puts his World Championship title on the line

At least three World Title showdowns were promised for the scintillating card, but it seems ONE wants to go all out, as it now has five fights for gold on the lineup.

Ruotolo is one of the brightest young talents in submission grappling, and he has been on a tear since joining the world’s largest martial arts organization in 2022. 

In his promotional debut at ONE 157, he submitted grappling star and MMA contender Garry Tonon with his signature D’Arce Choke. Since then, he has consistently tested himself against stars physically bigger than him, including reigning ONE Middleweight World Champion Reinier de Ridder, and came out on top every time. 

In his latest outing last November, Ruotolo finally got a crack at gold, taking on Russian grappler Magomed Abdulkadirov for the inaugural ONE Welterweight Submission Grappling World Title at ONE Fight Night 16. After 10 minutes of action, he proved to be the better man once again and had the prestigious strap draped on his shoulder as a result. 

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Immediately after his win, Michell was among the names that the 20-year-old singled out as a potential challenger to his reign, and he has now got his wish. 

Two young bloods battle it out for the first time against each other

Like Ruotolo, the 25-year-old Aussie is a force in the grappling circuit and one of the top no-gi athletes on the planet today. 

A two-time ADCC Asia & Oceania Trials gold medalist, Michell owns victories over current IBJJF No-Gi World Champion Roberto Jimenez and IBJJF Gi World Champion Jansen Gomes. 

He will put his current six-fight win streak on the line against Ruotolo as he looks to make an immediate splash in his ONE Championship debut. 

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After taking out MMA stars with impressive grappling backgrounds, the defending World Champion will now face a fighter making waves in his sport, and who owns an equally impressive run.

Expect more bouts to be announced in the coming weeks as the organization looks to impress in its debut in Qatar on March 1.