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ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion Tye Ruotolo is coming off an eight-month layoff because of injury. He, however, brushed off concerns about ring rust when he returns to action next month.
The 22-year-old Atos standout is set to defend his world title against Canadian challenger Dante Leon on May 2 at ONE Fight Night 31: Kongthoranee vs. Nong-O II on Prime Video. It will be the co-headlining match of the event happening at the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
Ruotolo is coming off a knee injury he sustained in August outside of ONE Championship that kept him out for the rest of 2024 and well into the new year.
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In an interview with the promotion, Tye Ruotolo assured that he is ready to compete once again come fight night and it is now about going out there and doing it.
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He said:
"I feel like the more I get asked, the more people are trying to ask. You know what? What I realized is that for sure, if you don't compete, there's gonna be a certain level of nerves you're gonna feel. And at the end of the day, it's all mental, you know?"
Tye Ruotolo was last in ONE action in July in Bangkok, where he defeated South African phenom Jozef Chen by decision in their catchweight (186 lbs) submission grappling match.
The following month, he got hurt in a CJI tournament in Las Vegas and underwent a procedure after.
The match at ONE Fight Night 31, meanwhile, will mark the second defense of Ruotolo of the world title he won in November 2023.
ONE Fight Night 31 is available live at U.S. primetime to North African fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.
Tye Ruotolo vows to give an exciting performance in return to action
Out for some time because of his injury, Tye Ruotolo vowed to make up for lost time at ONE Fight Night 31 by giving an exciting performance against Dante Leon in their title match.
The reigning welterweight submission grappling king shared this in the same interview with ONE Championship, highlighting his goal of successfully defending his world title but at the same giving fans an exciting showing they can bask in.
"I don't know necessarily how important it'll be. It's gonna be exciting. That's all I care about."
The match at ONE Fight Night 31 is the third meeting between Ruotolo and Leon. They met twice previously outside of ONE Championship and had a victory each.
