“We have to go straight into the next camp” - Tye Ruotolo says there’s no rest for the wicked, looks toward CJI
ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion Tye Ruotolo remains busy following his latest match in ONE Championship. He's preparing for upcoming tournaments, including the Craig Jones Invitational (CJI) in August in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.A.
The 21-year-old Atos standout recently competed at ONE Fight Night 23: Ok vs. Rasulov on July 5 in Thailand, where he got the better of 19-year-old BJJ phenom Jozef Chen in their catchweight (186 pounds) submission grappling contest, winning by unanimous decision.
In an interview with the South China Morning Post following his victory, Tye Ruotolo shared what is next for him, saying:
"Short-term agenda? Just cruise for the next couple of days no matter what. Then, maybe the next week when I get back home, we have to go straight into the next camp here pretty soon. So I got to get my neck pretty situated, get everything all good, and then get ready for CJI, you know."
Watch the full interview below:
At ONE Fight Night 23, Tye Ruotolo had himself a battle against Chen, who displayed solid defensive skills while executing crisp counter-aatcks of his own.
But Ruotolo kept up the pressure and aggressiveness as their 10-minute joust progressed, helping his cause significantly to earn the unanimous decision victory.
Tye Ruotolo also has MMA debut in the horizon
Apart from continuing his highly successful jiu-jitsu career, Tye Ruotolo is also determined to make his foray in MMA under ONE Championship. And he is looking forward to the day he gets to plunge into the multi-faceted sport.
In the same interview with the South China Morning Post, the American grapppling ace shared that he has made significant strides in honing his MMA skills and is ready for whoever is placed against him in his MMA debut.
The 21-year-old Californian said:
"It does not really matter to me. It'll be my first MMA fight, you know, my first debut ... But it really doesn't matter to me, you know. I know that my hands are great, you know, and I know that my jiu-jitsu is even better."
Ruotolo's twin brother Kade, the lightweight submission grappling world champion, already made his MMA debut in June and was victorious over fellow American fighter Blake Cooper by way of submission in the first round.