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Tye Ruotolo, Cole Abate, and Dante Leon undeniably stole the spotlight in ONE Championship’s showcase of 2024’s most thrilling submission finishes.
As the world’s largest martial arts organization gears up for its action-packed 2025 calendar, it revisited last year’s standout tapout triumphs, with Ruotolo, Abate, and Leon leading the charge.
Check the carousel of submission finishes posted by the promotion on Instagram:
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Ruotolo continued to assert his dominance in 2024, kicking off his campaign with a hard-fought defense of the ONE welterweight submission grappling world title against Izaak Michell at ONE Fight Night 21 in April.
Michell proved to be no pushover for the 21-year-old American phenom, relying on his wrestling pedigree to take the defending champion to the mat.
However, Ruotolo’s crafty technique turned the tide. A masterful sweep transitioned him into the mount position, and from there, the Atos Jiu-Jitsu representative wasted no time taking Michell’s back and locking in a modified rear-naked choke to earn the submission victory.
Meanwhile, at ONE Fight Night 26 this past December, Abate and Leon delivered show-stopping performances that left fans buzzing.
Abate made waves by submitting former ONE lightweight MMA world champion Shinya Aoki with a textbook heel hook in a lightweight submission grappling clash.
In another light submission grappling duel on the same card, Leon showcased his expertise by defeating multi-time no-gi world champion Bruno Pucci with a deep triangle choke.
Cole Abate, Dante Leon racing toward potential duel against Kade Ruotolo
With divisional kingpin Kade Ruotolo — Tye Ruotolo’s twin brother — currently focused on mixed martial arts, the lightweight submission grappling landscape is wide open.
Both Cole Abate and Dante Leon have emerged as formidable contenders, with either of them potentially setting the stage for an epic showdown with Kade when he returns to his natural discipline to defend his ONE lightweight submission grappling world title.
