"If he was capable of being here, he would" - Rich Franklin says Kade Ruotolo bummed to have to pull out of Mikey Musumeci match
Kade Ruotolo is disheartened about missing out on the opportunity to defend his lightweight submission grappling world title against Mikey Musumeci this coming Friday at ONE 168: Denver.
Arguably one of the biggest matches in the history of grappling fell through due to injuries Ruotolo suffered at the Craig Jones Invitational (CJI) last month.
Ruotolo, of course, understands the magnitude of the mega-fight with Musumeci, which has garnered massive attention not just from BJJ enthusiasts, but martial arts fans in general.
As such, the Atos standout still tried to push through with the match but ultimately made the tough choice to pull out.
This was revealed by ONE Vice President Rich Franklin during his opening remarks at the ONE 168: Denver press conference:
"I should probably address the Kade and Mikey situation. As you know, the submission grappling match has been pulled from the card. Kade was obviously injured in the CJI tournament. We took some time to figure out, and he took some time to figure out whether or not he was injured or hurt. It was, in fact, an injury."
The retired MMA legend-turned-ONE executive added:
"He couldn't be here in Denver. I know that Kade is a warrior, and if he was capable of being here in Denver, he would."
Watch the full ONE 168: Denver press conference, here:
Mikey Musumeci will now face Bebeto Oliveira at ONE 168
Mikey Musumeci will stay on the card and has agreed to fight replacement opponent Bebeto Oliveira.
This short-notice match proves 'Darth Rigatoni's' willingness to take on all comers, considering he prepared to move up three weight classes to challenge Ruotolo at lightweight.
Now, the flyweight submission grappling world champion will return to his division and put his own 26 pounds of gold on the line against a reigning IBJJF world champion.
ONE 168: Denver is free for Prime Video subscribers in North America. Tickets for this historic event are available via Ticketmaster.