Newly crowned ADCC champion Kade Ruotolo recently had an interview about his upcoming match in ONE and declared, among other things, that he does not think that Gordon Ryan will be able to heel hook him if they rolled.
Ruotolo Confident In His Leg Lock Game
The youngest ever ADCC champion (19 years old) who won the -77 kg division is about to have a title shot at the inaugural lightweight ONE submission grappling title. After a flawless performance on the ADCC mats, with four submissions (two chokes and two leg locks) it is safe to say that the young ATOS prodigy is flying high on success.
In an interview with ONE Championship Kade stated “Personally, I’m very confident in my leg locks and my counter abilities, and I don’t think anyone can really leg lock us out there. At least heel hook us out there, for sure. You know, even if I were to roll with Gordon [Ryan], I don’t think he can heel hook me. So mentally, I feel very confident in my heel hook defense. You know, there are other leg locks out there that you can always catch people with. But I’m ready for it. And I think I’ll get the better of it.”
His confidence is going to be put to the test soon, although not by Ryan himself. Kade Ruotolo’s next match is going to be a representation of BJJ vs. Sambo.
Kade Ruotolo vs. Uali Kurzhev
The person Kade Ruotolo will have to overcome in order to win the inaugural ONE submission grappling lightweight title is Uali Kurzhev, a four-time Sambo World Champion and International Judo Federation Grand Slam and Grand Prix Champion.
Apart from a very entertaining clash of styles, the matchup will definitely test young Ruotolo’s skills against a very experienced grappler who is bound to have an unorthodox submission game, at least under BJJ standards. In fact, Kurzhev is famous for being a leg lock specialist in an art that specializes in leg locks, so Kade’s defensive leg lock game will definitely be put to the test.
Kade Ruotolo does not seem phased at all, although he clearly expects his opponent’s background and relishes the new challenge, according to his statement for ONE:
“And, of course, Sambo guys are tricky. They do some things more. A lot more straight ankle locks, toeholds, kneebars, and things like that. Not as many heel hooks, but they do dabble with them. So I’m very excited to see what he throws at me…”
The inaugural ONE lightweight submission grappling world title match between Kade Ruotolo and Uali Kurzhev will take place on ONE on Prime Video 3 on October 21.
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