“Every fight starts on the feet” - BJJ champ Kade Ruotolo believes his MMA opponents will test his striking

ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion Kade Ruotolo is expecting his striking skills to be tested immediately in his much-awaited mixed martial arts debut next month and thereafter.

The 21-year-old Atos standout will dip his hands in the mutli-faceted sport of MMA for the first time at ONE 167: Tawanchai vs Nattawut on June 7 in Bangkok, Thailand.

He will go up against Hawaiian fighter Blake Cooper in a lightweight MMA clash, part of the event happening at the Impact Arena and airing live and for free in U.S. primetime to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.

It is the first of what he hopes to be of many MMA matches he will have as he continues with his ONE Championship journey.

Speaking with Karyn Bryant on YouTube, Kade Ruotolo shared his expectations about his about-to-begin MMA campaign, particularly about his striking, saying:

"Me being the grappler, the jiu-jitsu guy, I imagine everyone is going to be really trying to take advantage of the situation, because, you know, every fight starts on the feet, right? So I'm sure the action is going to start as soon as the match starts because we'd have to do some striking first."

Watch the interview below:

BJJ ace Kade Ruotolo came on board ONE Championship in May 2020 and has been unstoppable since in submission grappling, winning the lightweight gold along the way. He is looking to extend such success in MMA.

Out to trip him in his initial MMA foray is Cooper, 27, who looking to bounce back after losing in his promotional debut last September.

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Kade Ruotolo thoroughly working on MMA game for debut

Kade Ruotolo wants his MMA debut next month to be a winning one and has been working on his game thoroughly in the lead-up.

The reigning ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion will battle fellow American Blake Cooper in his maiden MMA outing at ONE 167: Tawanchai vs Nattawut on June 7 in Thailand.

Ruotolo said he is looking forward to the contest and that he is working hard to produce a winning performance.

He shared to ONE Championship in an interview:

"I just want to stay as active as possible and check all the boxes. MMA, jiu-jitsu, and everything else after that may come with it."

Competing in MMA is a long-standing goal for Kade Ruotolo, part of his push to continue his growth as a martial artist.