“Such a special place to me” - Tye Ruotolo has nothing but love for his Thai fans after world title defense over Dante Leon

Bangkok is practically Tye Ruotolo's second home.

The reigning ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion retained his gold against Dante Leon in front of his Thai faithful at ONE Fight Night 31 this past weekend at the historic Lumpinee Stadium.

Following his unanimous decision win over Leon, Ruotolo said in his post-fight interview that Bangkok would always be a special place for him and his career.

Tye Ruotolo said:

"For everyone in Thailand, khop-khun-ka mak mak [Thank you so much]. I love this place so much, and Lumpinee is such a special place to me."

Ruotolo fought all over in his ONE Championship career, fighting in Singapore, Manila, Denver, and Bangkok, but the Thai capital city became the site of his biggest wins.

The 22-year-old became the inaugural ONE welterweight submission grappling world champion when he outclassed Magomed Abdulkadirov at ONE Fight Night 16 in November 2023.

Ruotolo defended his throne for the first time when he submitted Izaak Michell at ONE Fight Night 21 in April 2024, then secured a unanimous decision win over Jozef Chen in a non-title matchup at ONE Fight Night 23 in July.

After spending the remainder of 2024 on the sidelines due to injury, Ruotolo made a triumphant return to Bangkok with a hard-fought unanimous decision win over Leon this past weekend.

Ruotolo outworked Leon and put the Canadian superstar on the defensive for the entire 10-minute scrap to defend his gold for the second time in his career.

ONE Fight Night 31 replays are available on demand and free to all Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.

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Tye Ruotolo admits he had to shake off ring rust in world title defense against Dante Leon

Tye Ruotolo knew he wasn't at his absolute best when he defended his ONE welterweight submission grappling against Dante Leon.

The American superstar spent nearly a year on the sidelines due to a knee injury he suffered at the Craig Jones Invitational in 2024.

Despite his dominant win over the two-time IBJJF No-Gi world champion, Ruotolo admitted he had to shake off the ring rust that afflicted him following his injury layoff.

He said in his post-fight interview:

"I felt like I had a little bit of ‘ring rust’ I had to shake off. But I definitely feel like I got a dominant win, so I was happy with that at least."