Kade Ruotolo says MMA great Demetrious Johnson is as passionate about Brazilian jiu-jitsu as he is
Reigning and undisputed ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion Kade Ruotolo of the United States is one of the most talented martial artists in the world today. But even the 21-year-old phenom looks up to a handful of people.
One of those people is mixed martial arts legend 'Mighty Mouse' Demetrious Johnson.
Johnson is a former UFC flyweight champion and now currently the reigning ONE flyweight MMA world champion. However, 'Mighty Mouse' has made great waves in Ruotolo's sport of BJJ, winning tournaments and gold medals left and right.
Ruotolo counts himself extremely impressed and has high praise for the American legend. He told Karyn Bryant in a recent interview:
"Personally, I prefer competing no-gi. But I love both, the gi and no-gi, you know. I was just talking with ‘Mighty Mouse’ the other day and it was interesting. He had the same theory, he was like, I think because he's so involved with MMA and watching the no-gi scene, and he's like, 'I just like to watch gi jiu-jitsu to be honest. And every time I know you guys are competing in the gi, I’m definitely tuning in.' So it was super cool to hear that and I think that's pretty interesting."
The Ruotolo brothers spent some time training with Johnson recently, as the trio shared knowledge and experience on the mat to prepare for Kade's upcoming matches.
Kade Ruotolo to make professional MMA debut against Blake Cooper at ONE 167 on Prime Video
Lightweight submission grappling king Kade Ruotolo will need to take out a page from Demetrious Johnson's playbook when he makes his first foray into mixed martial arts.
Ruotolo is set to lock horns with fellow American Blake Cooper at ONE 167: Tawanchai vs. Nattawut II on Prime Video.
The event broadcasts live from the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.
Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action live and absolutely free on Friday, June 7th, in U.S. primetime on Amazon Prime Video.
Stay tuned to Sportskeeda MMA for all the latest news and updates surrounding the event.