“Slick and quick” - Tye Ruotolo envisions early finish of Adrian Lee at ONE Fight Night 35

ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion Tye Ruotolo of the United States is expecting a quick night at the office in his first foray into mixed martial arts.

The Atos affiliate will don the four-ounce gloves for the first time against undefeated Adrian ‘The Phenom’ Lee in a three-round lightweight MMA contest at ONE Fight Night 35 on Prime Video on Friday, September 5, from Bangkok's legendary Lumpinee Stadium in Thailand.

Lee enters the bout with a perfect 3-0 professional record, having dominated all opponents with first-round submissions.

Despite the 19-year-old’s elite skills, Tye Ruotolo remains confident that he could get the job done and dominate just like he did in submission grappling.

While speaking with ONE Championship, he said:

"My plan is to get him out and finish the fight as soon as possible with what I’m the best at: jiu-jitsu. Slick and quick. That’s the plan."

Tye Ruotolo has maintained an unblemished 8-0 record in ONE Championship's grappling realm and has defended his belt a couple of times.

His world-class grappling credentials should serve him well for this transition, but fans are curious to witness how his striking will hold up.

We’ll soon see if he can retain the same level of success in MMA at ONE Fight Night 35.

---

Tye Ruotolo explains reasoning behind challenging Adrian Lee

Facing a formidable young star like Adrian Lee is a tough task for anyone, especially for fighters making their MMA debut.

Then again, Tye Ruotolo has always sought greater challenges, and he wanted a stern test right off the bat. The welterweight submission grappling king told ONE:

"I didn't call him out because he's a slouch. I didn't call him out because I think it's gonna be super easy. I called him out because he's really good and because it's gonna be a good win on the resume. I've got a lot of respect for the kid and the family, for sure."

North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription can watch this explosive lightweight clash and the entire ONE Fight Night 35 card live in U.S. primetime for free.