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Cole Abate talked about his intent to proudly represent the United States of America throughout his submission grappling career.
Earlier this month, Abate secured his first major world title as a black belt at the IBJJF No-Gi Championship. The 20-year-old posted photos and videos on social media about the accomplishment, representing the U.S. flag in most of them.
During a short interview with FloGrappling, Abate talked about why he made sure to showcase the American flag while celebrating:
"We don’t really have a prime representative of the USA. We US competitors, we have Americans all the time, but you see Brazilians all the time raising up their flag and showing love for their country. And I feel like I’m just gonna set an example and be a frontrunner for the USA and I like representing jiu-jitsu for us."
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At 20 years old, Cole Abate has made a name for himself in the submission grappling world. The American rising superstar's previous accomplishments include first place at the 2024 IBJJF No-Gi Pan Championship and first place at the 2021 ADCC EC U.S. Trials where he was the youngest champion of all time.
Watch Abate talk about representing the American flag below:
Cole Abate is waiting for next opponent in ONE
On December 6, Cole Abate made his ONE Championship debut at ONE Fight Night 26. The 20-year-old quickly put the division on notice with a heel hook submission win against Japanese legend Shinya Aoki.
Abate undoubtedly proved he's a force in the lightweight division, which is run by Kade Ruotolo. Abate was focused on winning the previously mentioned IBJJF World Championship and will likely return to ONE in early 2025.
Meanwhile, Dante Leon has his second promotional appearance booked after making his debut on the same night as Abate.
Leon is scheduled for a catchweight bout against Tommy Langaker on January 10, 2025. The intriguing matchup goes down at ONE Fight Night 27.
The replay of ONE Fight Night 26 can be seen for free by North American and Canadian viewers with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.
Watch Abate's submission finish against Aoki below:
