“I want to get a little bit bigger” – Tye Ruotolo says he’ll put on some size before hypothetical match with Gordon Ryan

Despite being in different weight classes, Tye Ruotolo, the ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion, and Gordon Ryan, a five-time ADCC World Champion, will always be closely associated with each other.

Despite their previous heated exchange, fans are still eager to witness a face-off between these two exceptional grapplers.

Tye Ruotolo has always been fearless in challenging the top competitors in grappling, regardless of their size. This list includes dominant athletes such as Nicholas Meregali and the previously mentioned Ryan.

Despite previously expressing his eagerness to face Ryan in the near future, Ruotolo reiterated his desire in an interview with ONE. However, he acknowledged that he still needs to build more muscle in order to effectively compete against arguably the top no-gi grappler in the world at present.

The prominent Atos representative stated:

“For me, I want to fight the toughest guys possible. I’ve been calling out Nicholas Meregali, it’s the fight I’ve been wanting for a long time. Meregali and Gordon Ryan. The Gordon match, I can take some time. I want to get a little bit bigger before I fight him.”

In the meantime, Tye Ruotolo, who is now 21 years old, has developed his physicality and is now equipped with a more robust figure to compete against the larger athletes in the sport.

At the recent 2022 ADCC World Championships, the youngest IBJJF world champion showcased his ability to not only compete, but also defeat much larger opponents in the Absolute division.

Tye Ruotolo to Defend World Title Against Izaak Michell in Highly Anticipated Matchup

It’s not often that the world champion is the individual who challenges potential opponents. However, this is precisely the level of competitiveness that Tye Ruotolo possesses.

In his quest to challenge the top contenders, he has been granted a match against one of the names on his list at ONE Fight Night 21: Eersel vs. Nicolas, which will be aired on Prime Video this Friday by ONE.

Ruotolo is set to protect his 26 pounds of gold in a match against Australian standout Izaak Michell at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok.

Be sure not to miss the highly anticipated showdown, set to be broadcast live during US primetime on April 5, at no cost for North American Prime Video subscribers.