Izaak Michell believes he shares similar "smooth" yet "aggressive" submission-hunting game with Tye Ruotolo
Submission specialist Izaak Michell sees plenty of similarities between himself and current ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion Tye Ruotolo.
The Australian promotional newcomer is scheduled to make his highly anticipated ONE debut on April 5 at ONE Fight Night 21, to challenge Tye Ruotolo for the welterweight submission grappling gold.
As such, Michell has exercised all due diligence against his highly touted opponent before they meet each other on the largest martial arts platform in the world.
Taking into consideration Ruotolo's all-around skillset - which is full of aggression and power - Michell has concluded that fans are in for a massive dogfight since they both channel the same type of intensity at the competitive level.
"Stylistically, we both go in head-on," Michell began telling ONE. "We both are pretty aggressive, but we also have good timing and can be smotth at the same time."
Indeed, Izaak Michell's grappling ability and style are very similar to Tye's. They are both physically athletic, entertainingly high-paced, and super unpredictable.
But more importantly, they can also de-accelerate and produce some of the smoothest chaining combinations we've seen in jiu-jitsu, which includes arm-to-leg takedown techniques that can lead into a submission.
Therefore, expect nothing but fireworks between Ruotolo and Michell as they fight for the top dog status in ONE Championship.
ONE Fight Night 21 goes down at the historic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium and will air live in US primetime on April 5, free of charge for existing Prime Video subscribers in North America.
BJJ fans predict an easy finish win for Izaak Michell over Tye Ruotolo at OFN 21
BJJ fans are predicting an easy win for the Aussie ahead of their OFN 21 clash on April 5.
The 25-year-old sensation has stolen the hearts of many jiu-jitsu fans with his submission-heavy grappling style. Capturing gold in nearly every competition in the sport, Michell just needs one more to establish himself as the number one welterweight submission grappler in the world.
Taking to Instagram this week, Michell posed the following question to his fans asking:
"For the ONE Championship world title and the #1 world ranking. What's your pick and how!?"
Check out some of the fan responses below: