“I was feeling a sense of responsibility” - Kade Ruotolo says he and Mikey Musumeci must represent the true essence of BJJ

Reigning and undisputed ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion Kade Ruotolo of the United States knows his upcoming showdown with fellow BJJ savant 'Darth Rigatoni' Mikey Musumeci must showcase the highest level of jiu-jitsu possible.

After all, Ruotolo and Musumeci are two of the best pound-for-pound grapplers on the planet.

When their showdown was announced months ago, it took the entire BJJ world by surprise. And almost immediately, Ruotolo felt a huge responsibility for the match to live up to all the hype.

Speaking to ONE Championship in a recent interview, Ruotolo shared his reaction to when he was offered the match with Musumeci.

The 21-year-old American phenom said:

"Hearing that, I was feeling a sense of responsibility. I’m like, ‘Dude, this is one of the biggest fights in jiu-jitsu history.’ It’s just pretty crazy."

Kade Ruotolo is set to defend his ONE lightweight submission grappling world title against flyweight submission grappling king 'Darth Rigatoni' Mikey Musumeci.

The two lock horns at ONE 168: Denver, which goes down live from the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado, on Friday, September 6.

Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action live and absolutely free on Amazon Prime Video. Those who want to watch the event live in-stadium can get tickets via Ticketmaster.

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Kade Ruotolo says there's no secret game plan to beating Mikey Musumeci: "We’re gonna pass his guard and submit"

Lightweight king Kade Ruotolo wants to keep things simple in his highly anticipated cross-divisional showdown with Mikey Musumeci.

The 21-year-old says there's no secret sauce to beating 'Darth Rigatoni', and he plans on keeping things basic.

Ruotolo told ONE:

"There’s no secret at this point in time. I think everybody already knows what my brother (Tye Ruotolo) and I wanna do – takedown, pass and submit. I feel like a broken record. I hate to be boring or whatever, but that really is always our strategy. That’s always our game plan. It’s no secret. So you know the drill."

He added:

"We’re gonna get him down. We’re gonna pass his guard and submit. And, if the submission comes in between, perfect."

Stay tuned to Sportskeeda MMA for all the latest news and updates surrounding ONE 168: Denver as it happens.