Tye Ruotolo stunned the martial arts world with his 97-second D’Arce choke submission over Garry Tonon at ONE 157: Petchmorakot vs. Vienot. However, the talented teenager is not finished with “The Lion Killer” just yet.
Tye Ruotolo Wants MMA Bout With Garry Tonon
In the post-event virtual press conference, the dynamic grappler teased a future meeting against Tonon in mixed martial arts.
When the Ruotolo Brothers signed with ONE Championship, they both were looking into transitioning into mixed martial arts at a later date. It seems that may come sooner than later, at least for one-half of the pair.
“I think it’d be fun for the fans for sure. I think he’s 6-1 in MMA, and he just came off a title fight… So now it’d be really cool to have the opportunity to fight Garry for sure in MMA,” said Ruotolo.
“I think after my performance tonight, I kind of deserve it. In jiu-jitsu, I proved that I’m better than him in the most humble way possible.”
In addition to that statement, Ruotolo added that he believes he has the better stand-up between the two as well. A strong claim from the California resident without having shown his skills in active competition just yet while Tonon has ascended to the top of the featherweight division as one of its top contenders.
There is no timetable set for Ruotolo’s transition into mixed martial arts, but the budding rivalry will give him a chance to make quick leaps into big-time matches if he can back up his claims.
Ruotolo has already proved the next generation of grapplers is on the scene. Can he be the next generation of mixed martial artists as well? Time will tell, and the world will be watching.
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