"He keeps running" - Tye Ruotolo believes terror-stricken Nicholas Meregali is backing out from a rematch

ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion Tye Ruotolo wasted no time shifting his focus to a former rival after passing his first assignment as a divisional king with relative ease at ONE Fight Night 21.

The 21-year-old grappling savant blitzed his way past a game Izaak Michell in the co-headline attraction inside the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in U.S. primetime this past Friday, April 5.

He pressed for action from the sound of the bell and found a myriad of ways to counter Michell's brilliant strategy in defense on his way to a unique 'Ruotolotine' choke finish seconds before the midway interval of their scheduled 10-minute war in Bangkok, Thailand.

With a perfect 6-0 run on the global stage of ONE Championship, all coming against elite contenders, the young phenom from Atos is ready to add another world-class name to his hit list, one that he has already called out on multiple occasions in the past.

Tye Ruotolo had this to say to members of the media during the ONE Fight Night 21 post-event press conference when asked about who he wants to face next:

"I mean, I don't want to sound like a broken record, but Nicholas Meregali, you know. Really, that's the only name that I want to call out right now. He keeps running. He's taking other matches against people, who with all respect, that I beat when I was 16."

Watch the full interview here:

North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription can relive all the action from ONE Fight Night 21 via replay.

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Tye Ruotolo eager to pull one back against Nicholas Meregali

Tye Ruotolo is confident he has what it takes to flip the script and level his series against Nicholas Meregali should the pair slug it out on the canvas soon.

The Atos representative lost via decision to the 29-year-old Brazilian in the semifinal of the Absolutes division at the 2022 ADCC World Championships.

But given his recent displays on the global stage, his motivation to run it back against Meregali is at an all-time high.

Reflecting on his loss to Meregali, Tye Ruotolo told ONE Championship:

"Man, it was for sure close. It was locked in, and you know, I learned a big mistake there. I never, will I ever try to finish the D'arce from bottom with a guy that much bigger. I should have rolled him, came on top, and finished it there when I had the chance."

He continued:

"I was on his head like 'I got you.' But the time ran out. So yeah, I'm ready to get that one back."