“They always have that ego” - Tye Ruotolo vows not to make the same mistake most grapplers do when they transition to MMA

Tye Ruotolo and his twin brother Kade have always done things side by side. From dominating the grappling scene to training under the same roof, it’s been a shared journey nearly every step of the way. But when Kade made the leap to MMA and racked up three impressive wins, Tye had to sit and watch from the sidelines—partly due to injury, partly because his own timeline hadn’t lined up just yet.

Now, with his knee healed and his ONE welterweight submission grappling title successfully defended in a hard-fought trilogy bout against Dante Leon, Tye is finally eyeing that long-awaited transition.

And he knows exactly what not to do.

Speaking in his ONE Fight Night 31 post-fight interview, he said:

"That's the thing with grapplers, they always have that ego...and they strike and they want to use their hands and not use their jiu-jitsu when they go and scrap, you know?"

Perhaps it could be called overcompensation, leaning too much on striking rather than using the grappling skills they already have. But Tye’s not trying to prove a point by abandoning his strengths. He wants to fuse them with smart striking and bring his signature style into a new arena without losing his edge.

“I’m just chomping at the bit” - Grappling Tye Ruotolo says MMA transition is next after gritty title defense win over Dante Leon

The fight with Dante Leon was his first since returning from a rough injury layoff, and while it wasn’t his flashiest performance, it kept the belt around his waist and cleared the path ahead.

In the same interview, he said:

"I can’t wait, I watched Kade have those three scraps and I’m just chomping at the bit to come in there now. It was so fun watching him, and yeah, we got a lot of fight in us."

Watch Tye Ruotolo defend his ONE welterweight submission grappling world title at ONE Fight Night 31, available for replay on Prime Video with an active subscription in North America.