‘I Know More Jiu-Jitsu Than Him’ – Tye Ruotolo Thinks His Creativity Will Prevail In World Title Defense Against Dante Leon
Tye Ruotolo believes he’ll be too much for Dante Leon to handle when they lock horns on May 2 in U.S. primetime at ONE Fight Night 31: Kongthoranee vs. Nong-O II on Prime Video.
At the iconic Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, the American superstar will put his ONE Welterweight Submission Grappling World Title on the line against Leon in the pair’s long-awaited rubber match.
The two first collided back in 2020 when Leon secured a hard-fought decision victory. A little over a year later, they met again, and Ruotolo evened the score with a last-second submission win.
They will now clash in a trilogy match with 26 pounds of ONE Championship gold up for grabs.
Ruotolo admitted the Canadian powerhouse is a well-rounded, tactically minded grappler who possesses all the physical traits needed to compete at the absolute highest level.
However, he thinks Leon is lacking some of the unique elements found in his own game. The 22-year-old titleholder told onefc.com:
“[Leon is] explosive when he wants to be. He’s flexible. As far as, like, an athlete goes, you build your own athlete, he’s got a lot of attributes that you’d want for sure.
“With that being said, I would say he’s not necessarily the most creative individual on the mat. Not to talk s*** or speak ill, I just don’t think he’s the most creative guy. But, yeah, he’s super smart. He’s technical. He’s tactical.”
The World Champion is confident that he’ll bring an innovative style to ONE Fight Night 31 that Leon simply can’t prepare for.
After a lifetime of training and competing in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Ruotolo simply feels that he and his twin brother, reigning ONE Lightweight Submission Grappling World Champion Kade Ruotolo, have honed their ground-fighting intuition to unmatched levels:
“I just think I know more jiu-jitsu than him in the sense where I’ve had more rolls than he’s had. I’ve felt more than he’s felt.
“People say it all the time when they fight my brother and I. It’s like they go to push us, and we’re not there. And I know Dante, he’s super good. He’s super technical, but I know for a fact that when he’s gonna go to push me, I’m not gonna be there. And, yeah, I think I’m just more creative and unpredictable.”
Ruotolo has displayed his creativity plenty of times over the course of his flawless 7-0 run through the world’s largest martial arts organization, whether he’s dominating wrestling exchanges with his inventive takedowns or hunting for another highlight-reel submission finish.
The Californian said that he has no shortage of ways to get Leon out of there, and on May 2, he plans to utilize his full arsenal:
“All I know is I’m just gonna come in hot like I usually do. And, as long as I’m a good version of myself, I think the match is gonna be over pretty quick.
“Whether it’s the head and arm choke or whether it’s with a D’Arce or even a leg lock, I know I’ve got a big bag of tricks I could throw at him, and I’m planning on getting him out pretty quick.”
Ruotolo Looks Back At First Two Matches Against Leon
Tye Ruotolo and Dante Leon have already shared the mat for nearly 30 minutes of frantic action.
Looking back on their first encounter, Ruotolo recalls Leon gaining dominant positions but believes the tide was beginning to turn in his favor:
“I was pretty young, and we had a scrap, for sure. I remember being in his face, back and forth.
“I think he got past my guard towards the middle of the match, and positionally, he was a little bit more dominant. It was back and forth. I felt like mentally, I almost won. I could tell he was tired and he was breaking. I had a lot more in the tank, but he got a couple better positions during the match, so he ended up getting the win.”
When they met in another 15-minute submission-only match in September 2021, Ruotolo was older and bigger, and he was able to score the arm-triangle finish after finding success from the top position.
That experience taught him that he needs to lean on his creativity if he wants to submit a grappler as skilled as Leon:
“I took him down a couple of times, passed the guard, put the pressure on him, and then, eventually, I got the Kata Gatami (arm-triangle) finish.
“I remember he was strong and flexible, and he’s very safe. He doesn’t make a lot of mistakes. He’s well-rounded, so he’s a hard guy to put away. But that’s why I’m trying to think of some more creative things as of lately to get through that little shell.”
While Ruotolo concedes that Leon has undoubtedly evolved since their first two matches, he’s also done plenty of evolving himself.
Ultimately, he’s focused on securing the submission in the quickest way possible:
“I’m going for a lot of those quick kills and trying not to drag my opponent in the deeper waters before before I get the finish. I want to be able to get in and get out. I don’t want to be on the mat longer than I need to.”
