Tye Ruotolo thanks striking-hungry Thai fans inside Lumpinee for embracing the art of jiu-jitsu: “I feel so much love”

Tye Ruotolo - Photo by ONE Championship
Tye Ruotolo - Photo by ONE Championship

Newly crowned ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion Tye Ruotolo is absolutely elated with his latest victory. He earned a unanimous decision win over dangerous Russian adversary Magomed Abdulkadirov to capture the gold.

Ruotolo and Abdulkadirov locked horns in the co-main event of ONE Fight Night 16: Haggerty vs. Andrade on Prime Video, which went down at the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand last Saturday, November 4th.

Ruotolo put on a clinical grappling performance, dominating Abdulkadirov with a variety of slick submission attempts. The American almost finished his opponent in the final moments of the match, but ran out of time.

In the end, all three judges awarded Tye Ruotolo the unanimous decision. The 20-year-old phenom joined twin brother Kade as a ONE world champion.

Ruotolo spoke to ONE Championship veteran broadcast analyst Mitch ‘The Dragon’ Chilson inside the ring after his match. He thanked the packed Lumpinee Boxing Stadium crowd for their incredible support, especially for the grappling arts.

Tye Ruotolo said:

“Thank you for all the fans here in Lumpinee. You guys are so rad, I feel so much love. I know jiu-jitsu is not Muay Thai, it’s hard to make it exciting but I do my best and I appreciate you so much, I love you guys.”

What’s next for Ruotolo? There are a host of options for the American star. One possibility is a much-awaited transition to mixed martial arts.

The Ruotolo brothers, Tye and Kade, have long teased a transition to MMA, which they say will definitely happen sometime in the near future. Tye even gave an update on the situation, and says his twin Kade is already getting close to his MMA debut.

A bigger possibility is for Tye Ruotolo defend his newly won welterweight grappling belt against the next best challenger ONE Championship puts in front of him.

Fans in the United States and Canada can catch a replay of all the action at ONE Fight Night 16: Haggerty vs. Andrade via replay on demand on Amazon Prime Video.

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