Tye Ruotolo refuses to ease into mixed martial arts competition gradually. He targets an immediate statement victory against undefeated Adrian Lee in his highly anticipated MMA debut.
Ruotolo faces Lee in lightweight MMA action at ONE Fight Night 35: Buntan vs. Hemetsberger on Prime Video on Friday, September 5, inside Bangkok, Thailand’s Lumpinee Stadium. The 22-year-old California native enters as the reigning ONE Welterweight Submission Grappling World Champion.
Ruotolo compiled an impressive 8-0 record since joining ONE Championship in 2022. He defeated elite competition including Garry Tonon, Reinier de Ridder, and Marat Gafurov while establishing himself as one of submission grappling’s most dominant forces.
His most recent victory came against Dante Leon in May when he retained his welterweight submission grappling title. The Canadian challenger provided stern resistance before succumbing to Ruotolo’s relentless pressure and technical superiority.
Lee represents exactly the type of dangerous test Ruotolo prefers for his MMA debut. The 19-year-old Lee family member owns three consecutive submission victories while earning $50,000 performance bonuses from ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong.
Ruotolo requested this matchup despite Lee’s undefeated record. The Californian believes defeating quality opposition early will accelerate his path toward championship contention in the stacked lightweight division.
“My plan is just to take out the better guys as quick as possible. I don’t care to try to beat up a bunch of taxicab drivers. My plan is to get him out and finish the fight as soon as possible with what I’m the best at: jiu-jitsu. Slick and quick. That’s the plan,” Ruotolo said.
“I didn’t call him out because he’s a slouch. I didn’t call him out because I think it’s gonna be super easy. I called him out because he’s really good and because it’s gonna be a good win on the resume.”