“His game is so diverse” - Tye Ruotolo talks experience rolling with BJJ legend ‘Buchecha’

Tye Ruotolo, one-half of famous submission duo the Ruotolo twins, made his triumphant debut in May at ONE 157. Ruotolo competed against multiple-time BJJ world champion Garry Tonon in a submission grappling match. Shocking everyone, Ruotolo submitted ‘The Lion Killer’ in just 82 seconds.

On that same night, his brother Kade Ruotolo scored a unanimous decision win over Asian combat sports legend Shinya Aoki in their own submission grappling bout.

With the brothers securing wins in their debuts over some of the best grapplers in the world, fans are eager to see Kade and Tye Ruotolo back in the circle as soon as possible.

Preparing for his return, Tye had the opportunity to roll with 17-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Marcus ‘Buchecha’ Almeida. Speaking to ONE Championship, Ruotolo discussed training with the BJJ legend on the promotion’s YouTube channel.

“We only got a little three-minute scrap in, but we were both breathing super hard. So it was for sure super fun. His game is so diverse, you know, looking in the competitions, he usually doesn’t even go to his plan B or plan C. He’s smashing everyone, you know. But it’s cool, we got to flow a lot of positions and see how deep his game is. It was nice, super fun.”

Catch the full video below:

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‘Buchecha’ compliments Tye Ruotolo after rolling with the BJJ prodigy

When it comes to Brazilian jiu-jitsu credentials, few are better than Marcus ‘Buchecha’ Almeida.

A 17-time world champion with 138 career victories, Almeida has parlayed that experience into an undefeated mixed martial arts career. In three appearances under the ONE banner, Almeida has scored three straight finishes with an average bout duration of only 2:35.

Despite being one of the best in the world, Almeida is also looking to learn from his peers, both young and old. ‘Buchecha’ recently commented on his opportunity to train with 19-year-old grappling sensation Tye Ruotolo.

“I was lacking but, it’s true you know, he’s rolling hard but he’s so relaxed that he makes it look easy. You can see that he was going hard, his body was not tense, but active all the time because he was so relaxed. I think that’s why their jiu-jitsu is so different, so aggressive because they are ready all the time.”

‘Buchecha’ will return to the circle on August 26 at ONE on Prime Video 1. He's set to face former world title contender Kirill Grishenko on the evening’s main card.

Neither Tye Ruotolo nor his brother have committed to a return date, but both have expressed an interest in a transition to mixed martial arts in the near future.