Tye Ruotolo says Jozef Chen’s technical brilliance has piqued his interest: “He’s really going to make me think”

Reigning ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion Tye Ruotolo expects a tough technical matchup with ONE Championship newcomer Jozef Chen this Friday night.

Returning to the legendary Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok on Friday, July 5, Ruotolo will welcome Chen, a 19-year-old BJJ star, to martial arts' biggest global stage at ONE Fight Night 23, airing exclusively on Amazon Prime Video in the United States and Canada.

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The two submission grappling stars will square off in a catchweight grappling match that should prove to be a technical and exciting affair.

"A lot of my, you know recent matches have been against guys who are really strong and physical, of course, good technique too," Ruotolo told Sportskeeda MMA. "But I'm excited to have a technical match, and he’s really going to make me think, you know? So yeah he's he's a very tough opponent for sure."

Making his seventh appearance for the promotion, Tye Ruotolo is a perfect 6-0 in his ONE Championship run, earning wins over Garry Tonon, Marat Gafurov, Reinier de Ridder, and Dagi Arslanaliev.

Jozef Chen ready to make a statement in his ONE debut against Tye Ruotolo

Growing up in the Taiwan capital of Taipei, Jozef Chen was a two-sport athlete, regularly competing in track and swimming before he found his love for martial arts as a teenager.

In the six years since he began training, Chen has already topped the podium at multiple events, including the IBJJF Asian Championships and the ADCC European Trials in 2023, and the IBJJF Pan Championships in 2022. He was also named the Breakthrough Athlete of the Year for 2023 at the Flo Grappling Awards.

Already making a name for himself with an impressive 72% finish rate according to BJJHeroes.com, Chen will look to take the next big step in his submission grappling career and hand Tye Ruotolo his first loss in ONE Championship.

ONE Championship fans in the United States and Canada can watch ONE Fight Night 23 live and for free via Amazon Prime Video in U.S. primetime on Friday, July 5.