‘David’ Tye Ruotolo will go ‘for the kill’ against ‘Goliath’ Reinier de Ridder

Submission grappling superstar Tye Ruotolo is coming up on the biggest test of his ONE Championship career so far.

Tye Ruotolo is set to take on former ONE light heavyweight world champion and reigning ONE middleweight world champion ‘The Dutch Knight’ Reinier de Ridder in a middleweight submission grappling contest.

A natural lightweight, Ruotolo is one of the most exciting Brazilian jiu-jitsu stars in the world today. De Ridder, meanwhile, is a mixed martial artist by trade who specializes in grappling, as evidenced by his 16-1 professional MMA record which includes 11 submissions. ‘The Dutch Knight’ stands at 6’4” tall and weighs over 200 pounds.

Make no mistake about it, what makes this a tough matchup for Ruotolo is the sheer size difference between the two.

Speaking to ONE Championship in a recent interview, Ruotolo addressed that size difference and said that it won’t matter.

Ruotolo was quoted as saying:

“It’s going to be a crazy match. A little bit of a David and Goliath situation. So I’m excited to take him down and show the true essence of what jiu-jitsu is all about – going for the kill no matter the size of your opponent.”

The 20-year-old Ruotolo, one half of the famed Ruotolo twins of BJJ alongside brother Kade, has remained unbeaten in two fights in the circle since joining the promotion last year. He’s looked increasingly spectacular with every performance. But Ruotolo’s next challenge could end up being his toughest yet.

Tye Ruotolo and Reinier de Ridder square off at ONE Fight Night 10: Johnson vs Moraes III on Prime Video. The event will be broadcast live from the 1st Bank Center in Colorado on May 5, marking ONE Championship’s first-ever on-ground U.S. event in history.

As always, ONE Fight Night events stream live and for free to fans in the United States and Canada via Amazon Prime.