Kade Ruotolo wants to make dream a reality after falling in love with MMA

For American grappling phenom Kade Ruotolo, fighting in mixed martial arts is a dream he wants to realize in the very near future.

The reigning ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion shared this in a recent interview with the South China Morning Post, underscoring his newfound love for the multi-faceted sport of MMA.

The 20-year-old Ruotolo said:

“But to me, honestly, I'm falling more in love with MMA every single day. I really want to start making that push too.”

Watch the interview below:

In venturing into MMA, Kade Ruotolo said he wants to continue challenging himself and grow as a fighter. But while he competes in mixed martial arts, he said he will not completely leave behind jiu-jitsu.

Ruotolo is being smart and strategic as he prepares for his transition to MMA, making sure he is not lacking the required skills before plunging into the sport.

He has been training on his own for now, with help from his team and friends doing MMA, but plans to pick things up moving forward, including finding a gym to train in the sport.

The Atos Jiu-Jitsu standout plans to start his MMA campaign before the year ends.

Kade Ruotolo was in action last week at ONE Fight Night 11 on Prime Video in Bangkok.

Ruotolo retained the ONE lightweight submission grappling world title by beating Norwegian challenger Tommy Langaker by unanimous decision at the event which took place on June 9 at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium. It was the second triumphant defense of the world title he won last October.

The replay of ONE Fight Night 11 is available for free on Amazon Prime in North America.