“There’s a little bit of history there” - Kade Ruotolo says Tye Ruotolo and Dante Leon have a score to settle at ONE Fight Night 31

Tye Ruotolo has his ONE welterweight submission grappling world title defense locked in and it'll be with a very familiar face.

Announced earlier this month on The Ariel Helwani Show, Ruotolo will put his 26 pounds of gold on the line against Canadian BJJ wizard Dante Leon when the promotion heads back to the legendary Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok for ONE Fight Night 31 on May 2.

As it turns out, it won't be the first time Ruotolo and Leon have gone toe-to-toe on the mat. It won't even be the second. ONE Fight Night 31 will be the third-ever meeting between the two submission specialists.

Speaking with the Bangkok Post, Ruotolo's twin brother and fellow ONE world champion, Kade, offered some insight into the history between champ and challenger:

"They fought twice, there’s a little bit of history there. So we’ll be back in the lab training jiu-jitsu and preparing for Dante."

In 2020, Leon earned a decision victory over Ruotolo at Grapplefest 8, but the Atos star evened the series a year later, submitting Leon at the WNO Championships via a guillotine choke.

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Dante Leon earned his shot at Tye Ruotolo with big wins over Bruno Pucci and Tommy Langaker

Dante Leon made a statement in his promotional debut on Dec. 6, scoring a quick-fire submission victory over Bruno Pucci at ONE Fight Night 26.

A month later, he returned to the ring for a clash with two-time ONE world title challenger Tommy Langaker at ONE Fight Night 27. This time around, Leon went the distance, but still walked away with a decisive unanimous decision victory, earning him his 145th career victory and setting the stage for a trilogy match with Tye Ruotolo.

For Ruotolo, it will be his first appearance of 2025. He closed out last year in impressive fashion, getting another big win over South African sensation Jozef Chen at ONE Fight Night 23.

Will Ruotolo close out his trilogy with Leon and keep his welterweight title intact, or will Leon end the 22-year-old's unbeaten run on martial arts' biggest global stage?

ONE Fight Night 31 will air live on Amazon Prime Video in the United States and Canada in U.S. primetime on Friday, May 2.