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ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion Kade Ruotolo successfully made a second defense of his belt in the co-main event of ONE Fight Night 11: Eersel vs. Menshikov on Prime Video a few weeks ago. Against a very gutsy Tommy Langaker, the 20-year-old BJJ prodigy was pushed to the limit.
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As he progresses his career inside the circle, the opposition has only gotten stronger and harder to beat. His nail-biting chess match with Langaker was a huge departure from the absolute domination Kade Ruotolo showed in his promotional debut against Shinya Aoki last year at ONE 157.
Ruotolo faced the former ONE lightweight world champion and Japanese MMA legend in a submission grappling bout. It was deemed an "old guard vs. new guard" match-up and the young lion announced his arrival. Like his twin brother Tye who soundly defeated grappling legend Garry Tonon on the same evening, Kade utterly decimated Aoki.
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Not only did he dominate every single moment of the match, but the future ONE submission grappling world champion also wowed the crowd with some moves never before seen in submission grappling.
Kade Ruotolo posted his ankle pick-to-back take against Aoki on Instagram:
"ankle pick to back"
After a handful of wild and inventive attacks and submission attempts from Ruotolo, the clock expired with no submissions scored. The young prodigy's relentless aggression and attacks, however, were enough to earn him a unanimous decision win. After his successful ONE debut, Kade Ruotolo became the youngest ADCC world champion ever and the inaugural ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion.
A month later, he defended his throne for the first time via a unanimous decision victory over Matheus Gabriel, Kade rounded up 2022 by winning ONE's Submission Grappling Athlete of the Year.
Kade Ruotolo started 2023 with a strong and hard-earned win over Tommy Langaker. At the moment, no official news has come out yet regarding Ruotolo's next fight. Interestingly, he and his brother Tye have expressed interest in transitioning into MMA soon.
