Two-Division ONE World Champion Christian Lee Predicts Submission Finish Against Tye Ruotolo
ONE Lightweight and Welterweight MMA World Champion Christian "The Warrior" Lee has a personal reason to fight on November 6.
The reigning two-division titleholder defends his lightweight crown against ONE Welterweight Submission Grappling World Champion Tye Ruotolo in the main event of The Inner Circle 37 this Friday. To watch it, stream the show via live.onefc.com.
Lee holds an 18-4 ONE Championship record with 17 finishes and owns the most wins, most finishes, and most knockouts in ONE Championship history.
Ruotolo steps into the contest undefeated with an 11-0 ONE Championship record and a 2-0 MMA mark, and a win would make him the first fighter to hold a ONE World Title in both grappling and MMA.
Lee Is Getting It Back for His Brother, Says It Is All Business
Lee, who co-owns Prodigy Training Center, has framed the matchup in simple terms. He respects Ruotolo's grappling credentials but believes there is one factor the challenger has not yet encountered in the ring.
"I'm getting this one back for my brother. It's going to be all business in there. He's a very good grappler, but you can't cheat the experience that he hasn't faced yet," Lee stated.
Ruotolo made his MMA debut in 2025 against Lee's younger brother Adrian Lee, submitting him via rear-naked choke, and Christian has not forgotten. Earlier, Ruotolo said he expects a war.
Lightweight King Believes He Is the Better MMA Fighter Everywhere
The narrative surrounding the fight is a familiar one, with a champion striker facing a world-class grappler. Lee does not buy into that framing and has made his own assessment of where the advantages lie.
"Everyone thinks that it's going to be a striker versus grappler matchup in the mindset, in terms of strategy. But I believe that I'm a better MMA fighter everywhere, even in the grappling area," he explained.
That is a bold claim against a fighter whose reputation is built on submissions, but Lee's 17 finishes in 18 ONE victories show the breadth of his game. If he can neutralize Ruotolo on the mat as well as on the feet, he will take away the challenger's greatest weapon.
Lee Predicts Ruotolo Will Not Last Five Rounds
The champion expects to break Ruotolo over the course of the fight and has gone so far as to name the round and the method. It is a prediction that turns the challenger's own specialty against him.
"I'm expecting to frustrate and break his will over the course of five rounds. I don't think that he's gonna have it in him to last all five rounds. Let's call it ... a round two finish by submission. That's my prediction on how this matchup ends," Lee declared.
Calling a submission finish against one of the greatest submission grapplers of his generation is the kind of statement that makes the main event of The Inner Circle 37 impossible to ignore. Ruotolo is chasing history, Lee is chasing revenge, and one of them leaves Bangkok with exactly what they came for.
Watch The Inner Circle 37 exclusively on live.onefc.com beginning at 6:30 a.m. ET/3:30 a.m. PT.
