Tye Ruotolo sent shockwaves through the submission grappling world during his ONE Championship debut at ONE 157 against Garry Tonon.
Buchecha Praises Tye Ruotolo
Ruotolo and his twin brother Kade are part of the grappling renaissance happening in ONE.
The company has been investing heavily into promoting submission grappling and has highlighted it on stacked events such as its 10th-anniversary showcase ONE X. Ruotolo’s quick finish of Tonon was one of many early highlights from the first half of 2022 in the sport.
Among his fans is multiple-time BJJ World Champion Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida.
The Brazilian recently joined a host of other top ONE athletes in Los Angeles for the ONE and Prime Video joint press conference and stuck around to spend time rolling with the young gun.
After experiencing what the teen had to offer, “Buchecha” was impressed with what he felt on the mat.
“I was lacking. But it’s true, you know, he’s rolling hard, but he’s so relaxed that he makes it look easy. You can see that he was going hard. His body was not tense but active all the time because he was so relaxed. I think that’s why their jiu-jitsu is so different, so aggressive because they are ready all the time,” Almeida said in the video.
“Even while doing a friendly roll, I can feel that he’s ready to kill.”
There has been no return date for Ruotolo, but he can be expected to be featured when he returns. ONE’s investment into submission grappling is opening doors for all of the world’s elite grapplers and elevating the sport.
“Buchecha” returns for his next outing in his young mixed martial arts career at ONE on Prime Video 1: Moraes vs. Johnson II on Friday, August 26. The inaugural Prime Video event will air at 9 p.m. EST/6 p.m. PST.
