ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion Tye Ruotolo kicked into another gear in his first-round finish over Japanese phenom Shozo Isojima at ONE 173: Superbon vs. Noiri at the Ariake Arena on November 16.
The 22-year-old American superstar showcased his steadily improving striking skills en route to a rear-naked choke submission win in Tokyo, and after the fight, fans were no doubt impressed by what they had witnessed from the BJJ prodigy.
Ruotolo not only showed the world-class grappling skills he is known for, but also the explosive striking he had been working on for the past couple of years.
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In a post-fight interview with Bangkok Post’s Nick Atkin, Ruotolo was asked when he knew he had the win secured. The welterweight king responded:
“Definitely. Today I felt like I rocked him a couple good times. I saw his eyes kind of starting to, you know, go around and I wanted to stay on him and finish the fight on the feet for sure, but yeah, I just, I'm a jiu-jitsu guy, you know, so it's hard, it's hard not to choke for sure.”
With the win, Ruotolo moved to 2-0 in his mixed martial arts career, both submission wins over highly regarded opponents.
The American is quickly rising through the ranks and making his case for a crack at the top five and the division’s gold.
ONE 173: Superbon vs. Noiri is available to North American fans via video-on-demand live.onefc.com.
Tye Ruotolo says quick finish was ‘a little bit sloppy’
As good as he looked at ONE 173: Superbon vs. Noiri, Tye Ruotolo believes he could have done a lot better. Ever the perfectionist, Ruotolo broke down his performance after the fight, and says he could have been cleaner with the striking.
Ruotolo told ONE Championship:
“I tried to get the match over as quick as possible. I definitely felt like I was a little bit sloppy for sure in my striking, you know, but I also felt like my opponent was on the back foot, you know, and I felt like I could really unleash.”
He concluded:
“Yeah, it was a great match. I was super stoked to get the win and yeah, all respect to Shozo, you know.”
