Tye Ruotolo thrilled to reignite old BJJ rivalry with former Craig Jones protege Izaak Michell

Tye Ruotolo, the reigning ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion, will face his toughest challenge yet in ONE Championship as he defends his title against Australian rising star Izaak Michell at ONE Fight Night 21 this upcoming weekend.

Ever since his victory at the 2022 ADCC World Championships, where he won the Match of the Tournament award alongside Vagner Rocha, Izaak Michell has been consistently climbing the ranks in the world of Jiu-jitsu. His success has been recognized not only in local competitions but also in international grappling circuits, making him a well-known name in the sport.

Michell, a member of Craig Jones’ esteemed grappling stable, The B-Team, offers Tye Ruotolo the chance to reignite his rivalry with the Australian grappling team.

During his conversation on YouTube with the South China Morning Post, he stated:

“That being said, you know, he’s another one who came from Craig Jones and all those guys so I’m excited to pull up for the team.”

View the entire interview here:

Tye Ruotolo impressed by Izaak Michell’s unique grappling style

Similarly to his twin brother and fellow ONE world champion Kade Ruotolo, Tye Ruotolo is renowned as one of the most intimidating grapplers in the sport, thanks to his relentless and aggressive grappling technique. At only 21 years old, he employs a relentless pace and relentlessly searches for submission opportunities, rendering it extremely challenging for opponents to defend against his relentless attacks.

Interestingly, the world champion has noted similarities between himself and his challenger Michell, as he shared with the South China Morning Post:

“He [Michell] is, for sure. His style of jiu-jitsu intrigues me. Number one, I know he likes to fight hard and he’s very aggressive, you know, which is good because I like when people are aggressive towards me. It definitely brings a bigger and deeper beast out of me.”

In a conflict between aggressive gunslingers, the one who draws first will be victorious. The individual who establishes their offense early on in this competition is likely to gain the advantage.

Existing Prime Video subscribers in North America will be able to watch ONE Fight Night 21 live and free of charge during US Primetime.