“I think Matheus can get an armlock” - ‘Buchecha’ is picking Kade Ruotolo to lose world title at ONE on Prime Video 5

Brazilian jiu-jitsu superstar Marcus ‘Buchecha’ Almeida believes Checkmat BJJ teammate Matheus Gabriel has what it takes to stun Kade Ruotolo with his signature armbar.

Matheus Gabriel was hand-picked to challenge teenage prodigy Kade Ruotolo for the ONE lightweight submission grappling world title at ONE on Prime Video 5. The event will be broadcast live and for free to American audiences with a Prime subscription.

By now, everyone in the martial arts world knows who Kade Ruotolo is. The recently crowned grappling champion has turned BJJ on its head with his charisma and entertaining fighting style, which helped him capture the inaugural lightweight submission grappling gold at ONE on Prime Video 3 this past October.

But if you ask legendary jiu-jitsu star Marcus ‘Buchecha’ Almeida who he thinks is going to win the battle tonight, it's not the reigning champ.

The Brazilian told ONE:

"Matheus. This fight will be the fight of the event and who makes less mistakes will win because they both will fight in 'kill or be killed' mode. But I think Matheus can get an armlock from deep half."

Many people perhaps don’t know that Almeida has rolled with both Kade and Gabriel. Last summer, ‘Buchecha’ visited Kade’s gym and friendly rolled with him and his twin brother, Tye.

Although he doesn’t deny their talent, his relationship with Gabriel is different. They’ve been Checkmat BJJ teammates since Gabriel first arrived to train in the United States and have therefore formed a close bond.

It’s always difficult to predict the winner when both men are phenomenal at what they do. In this case, ‘Buchecha’ believes Matheus Gabriel has the edge.

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'Buchecha' predicts the outcome of the welterweight war between Ramazanov and Soldic

Marcus 'Buchecha' Almeida also made a pre-fight prediction about the highly anticipated welterweight war between Murad Ramazanov and Roberto Soldic, which will also feature on the main card at ONE on Prime Video 5.

Ramazanov vs. Soldic is a true wrestler vs. striker fight. Ramazanov is arguably one of the biggest threats in the division as he’s been able to inflict his iron will on opponents with his wrestling and boxing prowess.

However, Roberto Soldic is also a troublesome athlete, with an astonishing knockout ratio of 85%. Possibly having the hardest hands in the division, fans have yet to see what he’s capable of since Ramazanov will mark his first opponent in the promotion.

Almeida, however, is keeping the streak alive by betting on another underdog:

"I'm picking Soldic. I’m really excited to watch his debut in ONE Championship. This will be awesome, I believe he will knock out Murad because he has so much power!"

ONE on Prime Video 5: De Ridder vs. Malykhin broadcasts live on Friday, December 2, and is free for fans in the United States and Canada with an Amazon Prime subscription.