“Come get it” – Relive welterweight submission grappling king Tye Ruotolo’s call-out of challenger Izaak Michell in 2023

As the reigning ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion, Tye Ruotolo has a list of opponents that he plans to defeat when he returns to the ring this Friday night.

Returning to the renowned Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, ONE Fight Night 21 will feature Ruotolo defending his title against the formidable Izaak Michell.

“I got a hit list, you know? I know Izaak Michell and Pedro Marinho are both good matches,”Rutolo said. “Whoever feels like they can challenge me, come get it.”

Tye Ruotolo, who holds the IBJJF world champion title, will defend his 26-pound gold belt for the first time since his unanimous decision win over Magomed Abdulkadirov at ONE Friday Fights 16 in November. This victory improved his record to a flawless 5-0 with ONE and solidified his place in history as the promotion’s first ever welterweight submission grappling champion.

Izaak Michell set to challenge Tye Ruotolo for ONE Championship title

Izaak Michell, a BJJ star who has trained under renowned names in the sport such as Leo Arruda, John Danaher, and Craig Jones, is determined to dethrone Tye Ruotolo from his title.

As a child in Adelaide, South Australia, Michell’s future appeared to be in football. However, at 16 years old, he stumbled upon ‘the gentle art’ and his path took a different direction. At 18, he decided to leave home and train with the renowned Renzo Gracie.

In the past few years, Michell has received numerous awards in the field of jiu-jitsu. His most notable achievement was winning first place at the 2021 IBJJF world championships as a brown belt. The next year, he came in first at the ADCC Asia & Oceania Trials and also took home first place at the Who’s Next Tournament.

Will this Friday night be the moment when Izaak Michell finally achieves his first ONE world championship, or will Tye Ruotolo maintain his dominant reign over the welterweight grappling division?

North American ONE Championship fans can tune in to watch ONE Fight Night 21 live and free on April 5 during U.S. primetime on Amazon Prime Video.