“Insane matchup” - Fans ready for heated grappling chess match between Tye Ruotolo, Izaak Michell in Qatar

ONE Championship has all been about breaking boundaries since the promotion began and the first quarter of 2024 will feature a landmark event as they head to Qatar for the first time with ONE 166 taking place at the Lusail Sports Arena on March 1.

As such, they are going all out with the matchmaking as five ONE world championships will be defended, with one of the most recent additions being Izaak Michell hoping to take Tye Ruotolo’s ONE welterweight submission grappling world championship.

This matchup will mark the first time that Ruotolo will defend his spot atop the mountain after becoming the division’s inaugural world champion by defeating Magomed Abdulkadirov last November at ONE Fight Night 16 via unanimous decision.

ONE Championship confirmed the bout’s inclusion to ONE 166 on Instagram and fans were quick to share their reactions in the comments section:

“Insane matchup”

“That’s a good one!”

“Interesting fight”

“Wow banger match !!!! Fireworks”

“That’s gonna be a fantastic match!!”

“This is big!”

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Tye Ruotolo opens up on how he maintains his edge

Submission grappling is an extremely tricky combat sport and with the many up-and-comers continuously getting better, Tye Ruotolo wants to stay ahead of the curve.

In a recent interview, Ruotolo made it known that he is never content with the success that he and his brother Kade, the reigning ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion, have reached thus far in their careers.

“That's just part of staying at the top, you know?" Tye Ruotolo said. "You got to always be evolving, making sure that nobody's on some new stuff that you haven't figured out yet. There's always some stuff you got to know that you haven't quite figured out and there are so many moving parts. So it's just making sure you're at the top of as much as you can be.”

As for Michell, this bout will mark his promotional debut and is gifted with the opportunity of a lifetime to become a ONE world champion in his first bout with the world’s largest martial arts promotion.

Check your local listings or visit ONE Championship's official website on how to watch ONE 166 from your location.