“Definitely a lot different” - Kade Ruotolo explains the challenges he faced against sambo world champion Uali Kurzhev

Kade Ruotolo delivered another breathtaking performance on his return to the circle at ONE on Prime Video 3. The submission grappling star added another accomplishment to his resume, this time capturing ONE Championship gold. To do so, Ruotolo was forced to contend with sambo world champion Uali Kurzhev.

Appearing at the ONE on Prime Video 3 post-fight press conference following his victory, Kade Ruotolo spoke about taking on the sambo sensation and the differences he noticed between sambo and Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ).

“Definitely a lot different. He came in extremely hot, and extremely aggressive, as that sambo pace, it usually is kind of what I was expecting. He caught me clean with a foot sweep in the beginning. I got to give him props for that, it was a beautiful foot sweep.”

Continuing his comments, Kade Ruotolo shared his desire to show off his wrestling skills more inside the circle.

“And, you know, I definitely would like to show my wrestling a bit more. I think I got one more takedown in there. But it was an amazing match. And I'm so thankful for Uali to take it.”

It was another fantastic win for the 19-year-old prodigy, who just a month earlier became the youngest ADCC World Champion in tournament history, defeating all four of his opponents via submission to complete one of ADCC’s greatest runs.

Watch Kade Ruotolo's post-fight interview with Mitch Chilson below:

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Kade Ruotolo’s twin brother Tye put a fair amount of pressure on him heading into ONE on Prime Video 3

Putting 16 years of his life into Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Kade Ruotolo knew the importance of showing up and showing out as he entered the circle for his historic ONE world title bout with Russian sambo world champion Uali Kurzhev.

Just in case he forgot though, his twin brother was there every step of the way to remind him of exactly what he was fighting for:

“The biggest source of so-called pressure [is]- holding it down for jiu-jitsu [vs. Sambo]. That’s the first thing my brother said when I signed this contract: ‘Sambo vs. jiu-jitsu, you gotta hold it down.’"

No slouch in the world of submission grappling, Tye Ruotolo made his ONE Championship debut at ONE 157 in May, the same night his brother Kade made his own debut.

That night, Tye Ruotolo sent shockwaves through the submission grappling world, defeating Garry Tonon within 82-seconds via submission.

By the end of the night, the two brothers stood tall, each with a win in their promotional premiere and ready to take on anyone that ONE Championship throws their way.