"We need to see him again" - Young star Jozef Chen makes his mark in thrilling showdown against Tye Ruotolo

The lone submission grappling match from the recently concluded ONE Fight Night 23 this past weekend featured a catchweight battle between ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion Tye Ruotolo and promotional debutant Jozef Chen.

Ruotolo and Chen put on an incredible catchweight match inside the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. Eventually, the former took home the unanimous decision win to remain undefeated in the promotion.

One of Ruotolo's takedown attempts during the fight was reposted by the promotion on Instagram. In the caption, they wrote:

"Tye Ruotolo throws DOWN 👇 Who do you want to see the grappling star square off against next? @ruotolobrothersjiujitsu"

In the video, the Atos representative tried a side throw against the B-Team athlete, but Chen immediately popped right back up to prevent the takedown. Despite the defeat, the South African newcomer's incredible grit and heart have earned the fans' respect, as he pushed Ruotolo to the full 10 minutes of action without getting submitted.

Platform users @gegaoli, @bummercreek, @rohmartialarts, @therealfealart, @_mariyahm, and @blackbeltdoctor have given the 19-year-old phenom his rightful recognition, as they sent their positive message through the comment section:

"Chen was awesome. We need to see him again"

"I wanna see more from Chen in one 1️⃣"

"Rematch longer time in cage"

"Would've loved to see another 5 min round after that to help determine a more clear winner"

"I want to see @jozefchenjj again..."

"@jozefchenjj guard retention 🔥🔥🔥 for us BJJ guys 😍😍😍"

Screenshot of fans' comments

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Jozef Chen showed glimpses of his potential against Tye Ruotolo with several submission attempts

Even though he was unsuccessful in his first foray under the world's largest martial arts organization, Chen was still able to push the ONE welterweight submission grappling king to the limit.

In fact, he even threatened several leg lock submissions throughout the match, but Ruotolo successfully countered them and got out of danger. With this incredible performance, Chen could face any of the other submission grappling contenders in the division.

North American viewers with an active Prime Video subscription can rewatch all the action from ONE Fight Night 23 via the free event replay.