“We’ve got a good snap in our punches” – Tye Ruotolo says striking comes naturally for him and twin brother Kade

Brothers Kade and Tye Ruotolo have been competing at the very highest level in submission grappling for a long time, making them both young veterans.

Despite all of the incredible success that they have already achieved in this career, both men have hinted at a potential transition in the near future.

Submission grapplers learning striking so that they can try their hand at mixed martial arts is nothing new but the Ruotolo brothers have time on their hands to make a proper run at it. In fact, they’re no strangers to the striking arts either, having spent a lot of time in Muay Thai gyms earlier in life before dedicating themselves to jiu-jitsu and surfing.

Both brothers appeared on an episode of The Fighter and The Kid where they gave an update on how their MMA journey is coming along. Tye revealed that he believes they have the natural athletic ability to become effective strikers, crediting Kade with being a few steps ahead of any regular athlete:

“For Kade, I think it’s more of a natural transition than a normal guy. Because we’ve spent a solid six to seven years in Muay Thai growing up, and we’ve always known how to throw. Jiu-jitsu is so much of pushing and pulling, and that’s why I feel we’ve got a good snap in our punches. With Kade, he’s pretty good with his punches. He’s making the conversion well and I’m excited to see him.”

Watch the full interview below:

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Kade and Tye Ruotolo are still competing at the peak of submission grappling

Whilst they have one eye on a potential transition to mixed martial arts that has been picking up steam as of late, Kade and Tye Ruotolo are still competing at the absolute pinnacle in submission grappling.

After his brother became the inaugural ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion, Kade will look to defend his lightweight title for a third time in a rematch with Tommy Langaker.

The potential of seeing the Ruotolo brothers compete in MMA draws closer with every time that they step inside the Circle for a submission grappling contest. Whilst everyone wants to see how well they’re able to adapt to a completely different style of combat, you also don’t want to miss them competing in their specialist field.

ONE 165 will air live in Asian primetime on January 28, check your local listings for more details.