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rCanadian jiu-jitsu ace Dante Leon said he had a hard time finding sparring partners that could aptly simulate what to expect from Tye Ruotolo in their title match this week. He, however, said they were able to piece things together to be ready come fight night.
The two top submission grapplers are to battle at ONE Fight Night 31: Kongthoranee vs. Nong-O II on Prime Video on May 2. Ruotolo will be defending his welterweight submission grappling world title against Leon in the co-headlining match of the event happening at the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
In an interview with ONE Championship in line with his title bid, Leon said in training they tried to replicate Ruotolo's game with different sparring partners. He admitted though it was not easy, because the reigning welterweight king is unique as a fighter.
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The 29-year-old Pedigo Submission Fighting standout said:
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"You kinda have to piece it together. When you think about somebody like Tye, it's hard to find somebody who has that. You could find somebody who has really good D’Arces, but then they're usually gonna be a tall, lanky kind of grappler, and that's not really what Tye is, even though he is taller in length here.
"He's not necessarily a huge guy. He has pretty long arms. He has quite a wingspan on him, but he's very athletic. He's very strong. He's very explosive."
Entering ONE Fight Night 31, Dante Leon is riding a two-fight winning roll since making his promotional debut back in December. In just a short period, he has willed himself to top contender status; something he said he will take full advantage of when he faces off with Ruotolo.
ONE Fight Night 31 is available live at U.S. primetime to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.
Dante Leon looks to claim upper hand in head-to-head matchup against Tye Ruotolo
While they are facing for the first time in ONE Championship, Dante Leon and Tye Ruotolo met twice previously outside of the promotion, taking a win each. It is a tie that the Canadian star looks to break in his favor at ONE Fight Night 31.
They first met in 2020 at Grapplefest 8, where Leon won by referee decision. Ruotolo then exacted payback in 2021 at the WNO Champions, winning by way of submission via guillotine choke.
Apart from taking the lead in their rivalry and becoming the new ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion, a win by Dante Leon at ONE Fight Night 31 will halt the seven-fight undefeated run of Ruotolo in ONE Championship.
