Previewing the submission grappling matches at ONE Fight Night 21
We look at Kade Ruotolo vs. Francisco Lo and Tye Ruotolo vs. Izaak Michell at ONE Fight Night 21 on April 5.
ONE Championship will host two of the most intriguing submission grappling matches in the promotion’s history at ONE Fight Night 21.
First, current ADCC and ONE world champion Kade Ruotolo will clash with Francisco Lo in a non-title affair. And in the evening’s co-main event, Tye Ruotolo will defend his ONE welterweight submission grappling world title against top-ranked contender Izaak Michell.
Both of those matchups will go down tonight, April 5, at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
Before the action gets underway, we take a closer look at each of these bouts.
Kade Ruotolo vs. Francisco Lo
At 21 years old, Kade Ruotolo (along with his twin brother Tye) is a mainstay on most pound-for-pound lists.
While the young Californian was long considered a prodigy, he seemed to finally reach his full potential in 2022 when he took home gold at the ADCC World Championships on the strength of four straight submissions. Since then, he has earned an undefeated record in ONE Championship with key victories over gi world champion Matheus Gabriel and no-gi world champion Tommy Langaker.
Lo, meanwhile, is a rising star in BJJ who could solidify himself as a top talent with a victory over Ruotolo. The Brazilian burst onto the scene in 2022 with sensational submission wins over ADCC veteran Oliver Taza and European champion Adam Wardzinski. He has since continued to compete at the elite level, notably winning gold at the 2023 IBJJF No-Gi Pans.
Stylistically, this matchup should produce plenty of action. Even though he’s failed to secure the finish in his past three ONE outings, Ruotolo remains one of the sport’s most opportunistic submission artists, equally capable of securing the d’arce choke as he is the heel hook or armbar.
The American pushes a relentless pace and generally prefers to work from the top position where he possesses world-class guard passing.
For his part, Lo is a well-rounded grappler whose best skill set is his ability to find creative submissions in the blink of an eye. The 23-year-old is comfortable in leg lock shootouts – impressively submitting leg lock specialist Jacob Couch with an Estima lock at the 2023 No-Gi Pans.
Look for Ruotolo to invest some energy early in securing top position. If he’s able to do that, he’ll likely employ high-paced outside passing to avoid Lo’s incredibly dangerous closed guard. Lo, on the other hand, should try to slow down his foe, either by wrapping him up in closed guard or earning top position where he tends to rely on pressure passing to create opportunities for the back-take.
Tye Ruotolo vs. Izaak Michell
Top-ranked 185-pound competitors Tye Ruotolo and Izaak Michell have been targeting each other for months, with both men calling each other out since last summer.
Like his brother Kade, Tye is widely regarded among the sport’s top pound-for-pound athletes. He is the youngest-ever IBJJF black belt world champion, an ADCC absolute bronze medalist, and undefeated in ONE Championship.
Ruotolo will come into this contest following a dominant win over ADCC veteran Magomed Abdulkadirov that earned him the inaugural ONE welterweight title.
Against Michell, the young American will be in for the stiffest test of his ONE tenure.
Although he’s just a brown belt in BJJ, Australia’s Michell is undoubtedly among the elite of the elite and is generally recognized as one of the top two or three 185-pound grapplers in the sport.
The 25-year-old formerly trained under John Danaher, then Craig Jones during his rapid ascension to the world-class level. Michell won gold at the 2022 ADCC Asia & Oceania Trials and, later that year, defeated 10th Planet standout Kyle Chambers in a no-time-limit match to win FloGrappling’s Who’s Next reality show.
He would go on to suffer a first-round defeat to Vagner Rocha in the opening round of the 2022 ADCC World Championships, but that thrilling encounter earned him Match of the Tournament honors.
Michell has since defeated top competitors such as ADCC qualifiers Jozef Chen and Jacob Couch, as well as current IBJJF no-gi absolute world champion Roberto Jimenez.
In terms of how this match will go down, fans can expect a fair amount of grappling on the feet, as both athletes are talented wrestlers who tend to do their best work from top position. Watch for Michell’s duck unders and throw-by’s, as he’s one of the best in the world at moving directly to the back from a standing position.
Ruotolo, meanwhile, will aim to do what he does in every outing: apply an incredibly high pace and pressure with the goal of wearing his opponent down before finding the match-ending submission. The American is generally comfortable attacking from his guard, but he’s unlikely to play bottom position against such a talented guard passer. Instead, look for Ruotolo to hunt for front headlocks and jump on any back exposure from the top position.
How to watch: ONE Fight Night 21 takes place on Friday, April 5, and will air live on Prime Video (free with Amazon Plus subscription) beginning at 8:00 PM EST.
