“Let’s get it done” – Kade Ruotolo says MMA debut was something he really wanted to do this year

Reigning and undisputed ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion Kade Ruotolo of the United States can't wait to step inside the Circle for the first time as an MMA fighter.

Ruotolo is set to make his professional mixed martial arts debut at ONE 167: Stamp vs. Zamboanga on Prime Video against fellow American Blake Cooper.

The two lock horns at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.

Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action live and absolutely free on Friday, June 7, U.S. primetime on Amazon Prime Video.

Speaking on a guest appearance on the Talk-Jitsu Podcast, Ruotolo talked about his upcoming MMA debut and why he feels that now is the perfect time to make that leap.

The 21-year-old American phenom stated:

"Besides having love for it, it's just wanting to just [dip] my toes. The main thing was I just wanted to get it done before ADCC, because I know I have to lock in for that. So I wouldn't be able to [do] that til later this year, the MMA debut. So I was like, you know what, let's get it done."

Ruotolo was determined to not delay his MMA debut any further, and now he's all but ready to step into the cage and throw hands.

Kade Ruotolo says jiu-jitsu has taken a back seat as he prepares for MMA debut: "There's been a lot more striking"

American submission grappling star Kade Ruotolo is fully fixated on his upcoming professional martial arts debut, so much so that he says his BJJ training has taken a back seat.

He told the Talk-Jitsu Podcast:

"Recently, there's been a lot more striking [in training]. Of course, and wrestling, things like that. It's not uncommon for us to take breaks in jiu-jitsu. We've always taken a lot of breaks in jiu-jitsu. Not that I'm breaking away from jiu-jitsu [totally], it's an MMA fight. But putting it on the backburner a little bit, not training every single day in jiu-jitsu or spending most of my day training jiu-jitsu."