WATCH: Kade Ruotolo goes from an ankle pick to a spinebuster-esque slam against Matheus Gabriel in Manila showdown

ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion Kade Ruotolo has consistently given fans reason to tune into his matches thanks to his explosive methods of attacking his opponents' defense.

Ruotolo would defend his 26 pounds of gold for the first time at ONE on Prime Video 5 in December 2022 in Manila, Philippines, against multi-time IBJJF gold medalist Matheus Gabriel.

During their bout, Ruotolo picked at Gabriel's ankle and saw an opportunity to take down his Brazilian counterpart with a pro wrestling-like slam that had fans oohing and aahing.

Watch Kade Ruotolo's grappling excellence below, as posted on ONE Championship's Instagram account.

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While Ruotolo was unable to lock in a submission finish right then and there, his unequaled dominance on the ground was more than enough for the judges to award him the unanimous decision to successfully defend his ONE world title.

Kade Ruotolo calls his shot for ONE 168 mega clash

Following his successful MMA debut at ONE 167 this past June, Ruotolo will defend the ONE lightweight submission grappling world title at ONE 168: Denver on September 6 inside the Ball Arena in Denver against the great Mikey Musumeci.

Musumeci, the reigning flyweight submission grappling world champion, will look to become the first-ever two-division ONE submission grappling world titlist at ONE 168, but Ruotolo believes he will come out on top then.

In his post-fight interview at ONE 167, Kade Ruotolo stated:

"Yeah, that's wild! I know a lot of people are psyched up for that, for sure. I'd be lying if I said I wouldn't think I'd get the submission. To be a hundred percent honest, I think I'm gonna get the sub in that one."

Tickets for ONE 168 are currently available via Ticketmaster.