“Blew my mind” - Kade Ruotolo says MMA training with Erik Paulson has been game-changing
Ahead of his highly anticipated mixed martial arts debut, Kade Ruotolo is learning a few tips and tricks from former MMA fighter and Hollywood stuntman Erik Paulson.
After dominating the world of submission grappling, Ruotolo will strap on the four-ounce gloves at ONE 167, emanating from the iconic Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand on Friday, June 7. There, he will square off with Blake Cooper, a returning prospect gunning for her first win under the ONE banner.
Speaking with the promotion days away from his return to the Circle, Kade Ruotolo revealed that he's learned some very exciting techniques from Paulson that could prove invaluable in his MMA journey.
"He went and showed me three techniques that I had never seen before that blew my mind, that I’ve been using in training till now," Ruotolo said.
For those unfamiliar, Erik Paulson trained under the legendary Gene LeBell, considered to be the man who introduced the art of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu to the United States. Paulson also trained with Benny Urquidez, a martial arts world champion who, like Paulson, made his mark in films as a fight coordinator for moves like Road House, Street Fighter, Gross Pointe Blank, and Spider-Man.
Paulson was the first American to win the light heavyweight Shooto championship in Japan.
ONE Championship fans in the United States and Canada can watch ONE 167 live and for free via Amazon Prime Video in U.S. primetime on Friday, June 7.
Kade Ruotolo will return to the mats at ONE 168: Denver on September 6
Once Kade Ruotolo takes care of some business at ONE 167, the reigning ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion will turn his attention toward his next title defense on Friday, September 6 when the promotion heads back to the United States.
Returning to The Mile High City, ONE 168: Denver will feature one of the biggest grappling matches of all time when Ruotolo puts his gold on the line against fellow ONE world champion Mikey Musumeci.
'Darth Rigatoni' will move up three weight classes in an attempt to dethrone Ruotolo and become ONE's first-ever two-division grappling world champion.
Follow this link for tickets for ONE 168: Denver on September 6 at Ball Arena.