Tye Ruotolo routes Magomed Abdulkadirov to claim ONE world title and $50k bonus
Match results and recap from Tye Ruotolo vs. Magomed Abdulkadirov for the ONE welterweight submission grappling world title.
Tye Ruotolo can now join his twin brother, Kade Ruotolo, in calling himself a ONE submission grappling world champion.
On Friday, in the co-main event of ONE Fight Night 16, the 20-year-old black belt scored a dominant decision victory over Magomed Abdulkadirov to claim the inaugural ONE welterweight submission grappling world title.
Widely regarded among the planet’s top pound-for-pound competitors, Ruotolo came into the contest Abdulkadirov – a 2015 ADCC veteran – as a heavy favorite. And while he wasn’t able to achieve a submission finish, he performed up to expectations in the 10-minute submission-only encounter.
After a brief feeling-out period on the feet, Ruotolo jumped into closed guard and immediately forced the Russian on the defensive. Shortly, Ruotolo dug himself into a K-guard entry and took a brief look at a leg lock before taking top position.
From there, he dominated Abdulkadoriv positionally, using a smash pass to move into the mount. Ruotolo looked to open up his foe from the strong position, but Abdulkadirov remained exceptionally tight with his defense.
The Californian then gave up mount to look for an opening and quickly jumped on a modified arm-in guillotine. That submission seemed to be fully locked in, but Abdulkadirov escaped.
Through the match’s closing minutes, Ruotolo remained in the driver’s seat and, in the final seconds, attacked an armbar that might have been the closest submission of the match.
The performance earned the Andre Galvao black belt a unanimous decision, the ONE welterweight submission grappling world title, and a $50,000 performance bonus – his fourth such bonus through four matches in ONE Championship.
After the victory, the newly crowned champion said he’d be open to a match against either Izaak Michell or Pedro Marinho – two opponents he’s previously spoken about facing.
