Grappling ace Kade Ruotolo books third MMA fight at ONE 171
The MMA evolution of Kade Ruotolo will continue next month as ONE Championship has booked the grappling ace for his third fight.
On Wednesday, a promotion official informed MMA Junkie that Ruotolo will compete in a lightweight bout against undefeated Nicolas Vigna on Feb. 20 at ONE 171 from Lusail Sports Arena in Qatar.
Ruotolo, who just turned 22 earlier this month, has made his name on the mats as a ONE submission grappling champion. So far, his top-notch Brazilian jiu-jitsu skills have translated well to fighting with a 2-0 start as a professional.
The Hawaiian made his debut last June at ONE 167 and submitted Blake Cooper in the first round for a Performance of the Night bonus. Ruotolo followed up five months later with a display of power and an even quicker first-round submission of Ahmed Mutjaba last November at ONE 169 for another Performance bonus.
In Vigna, Ruotolo will face an undefeated 34-year-old Argentine fighter with a 7-0 record. All seven of his fights, which have taken place in Argentina, have ended with finishes, including four submissions. Vigna will be making his ONE debut against Ruotolo.
Grappling star Kade Ruotolo finally figured out reason behind MMA pursuit
Kade Ruotolo def. Blake Cooper at ONE Championship 167: Best photos
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Grappling ace Kade Ruotolo books third MMA fight at ONE 171
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
📊 Brazil through, 3️⃣ spots left: the updated qualifiers table
There are only two rounds left of the South American Qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup! The five games of the 16th and third-to-last round were played on this Tuesday (10), with two more teams securing their spot in the World Cup in the USA, Mexico, and Canada. Advertisement In the first match of the night, Bolivia beat Chile 2-0 and not only kept their hopes of qualifying alive, but also mathematically eliminated the Chileans. Later, Uruguay defeated Venezuela 2-0 and gave an extra "push" to the Brazilian national team, which only needed to beat Paraguay to secure their spot in the 2026 World Cup. At home, Argentina - already qualified and "champion" of the Qualifiers - struggled against Colombia, but managed to draw 1-1. And the Brazilian national team did their job and beat Paraguay 1-0, securing their spot in the 2026 World Cup. Finally, Ecuador, with one less player, held on for a 0-0 draw with Peru, away from home, and also secured their spot in next year's World Cup. Advertisement 📊 Check out the updated Qualifiers table In South America, the top six teams in the standings automatically qualify for the 2026 World Cup. Argentina, Ecuador, and Brazil are mathematically guaranteed a spot. Uruguay and Paraguay are almost there. Even if Venezuela wins their last two games and the two rivals lose, the difference in goal difference is considerable and unlikely to be overcome. Colombia, on the other hand, is on a five-round winless streak and needs to be careful not to miss out on the World Cup. Venezuela and Bolivia are still fighting for a direct spot or, at least, a playoff spot. Advertisement Peru still has mathematical chances of reaching the seventh spot and the playoffs, but the goal difference also works against them in the dispute. 📆 Schedule for the last rounds of the Qualifiers 17th round (09/04) Uruguay x Peru Colombia x Bolivia Brazil x Chile Paraguay x Ecuador Argentina x Venezuela 18th round (09/09) Peru x Paraguay Venezuela x Colombia Bolivia x Brazil Chile x Uruguay Equador x Argentina This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here. 📸 Wagner Meier - 2025 Getty Images
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Merab Dvalishvili Open to Super Fight With Fellow UFC Champion
Merab Dvalishvili Open to Super Fight With Fellow UFC Champion originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Merab Dvalishvili successfully defended the bantamweight title for the second time on Saturday night. Advertisement It was a rematch against former champion Sean O'Malley, but Dvalishvili proved he's still improving. The Georgian did well mixing up his attacks, landing punches during wild exchanges with O'Malley, however it was once again his relentless work rate that wore out his opponent. He submitted a tired 'Suga' at the end of the third round with a nasty choke, earning his second career finish inside of the octagon and first since 2021 against Marlon Moraes. Dvalishvili is likely to take on No. four ranked Cory Sandhagen later this year. If he wins, it would be his 14th straight victory, putting him in rare air with Jon Jones (19), Anderson Silva (16), Islam Makhachev (15), and Kamaru Usman (15). Today he was asked by combat sports reporter Ariel Helwani about a potential super fight with UFC Flyweight Champion Alexandre Pantoja and is on board with the potential bout. 'Yes, if he will move up in my weight class and if the UFC is interested in that, no problem,' Dvalishvili said. 'I'm sure a lot of people will be interested in this fight. I respect Pantoja. He will be a tough opponent for me. If Pantoja wants this and if the UFC wants this, I have no problem with that." Advertisement Pantoja has cleaned out the flyweight division in a similar way to Dvalishvili as the Brazilian has won seven in a row. He's scheduled to take on Kai Kara-France later this month at UFC 317, but with another defense, it could be time for him to try becoming a champion in two weight classes. This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 9, 2025, where it first appeared.
Forbes
8 hours ago
- Forbes
Sean O'Malley: No Excuses For UFC 316 Loss, Potential Return Date
NEWARK, NEW JERSEY - JUNE 07: Sean O'Malley of the United States looks on after losing to Merab ... More Dvalishvili of Georgia in the bantamweight title bout during UFC 316 at the Prudential Center on June 07, 2025 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo) Sean O'Malley spent nearly nine months contemplating how he would get the UFC bantamweight title back from Merab Dvalishvili. It took Dvalishvili less than 15 minutes to crush O'Malley's dreams of a return to the top of the UFC's 135-pound division. In the lead-up to Saturday's UFC 316, there was a lot of talk about O'Malley's focus on his rematch with Dvalishvili at UFC 316. The former champ, who lost his belt to Dvalishvili via decision at UFC 306 in September 2024, spoke about how he had let the persona of "Suga" Sean O'Malley take over his life, saying. 'I just wanted less distractions in my life, just in general. I was too attached to 'Suga,' too attached to this character. And it was like pulling me out of who I am on a day-to-day basis. I am a dad, I am a husband… It has been life-changing.' While the changes O'Malley made ahead of UFC 316 will make him a better man, father, and husband, they did not help him in the cage. An upgraded version of Dvalishvili dominated O'Malley in the grappling department on his way to a third-round submission win in the main event of Saturday's fight card in front of a sold-out crowd at Newark's Prudential Center. O'Malley, who left the Octagon with no lingering injuries or need for post-fight surgery, reflected on his second loss to Dvalishvili, and third overall, on his podcast, 'No excuses. I had a great camp. Camp was really (expletive) good, sparring was good, everything was excellent.' When asked when he was planning a return to action, the 30-year-old O'Malley didn't have a set date in mind, but it did not sound like he was planning to take an extended break from competition. "It's hard to say," said O'Malley. 'The division is going to play out over the next few months. We'll see where it goes. December seems like it would make sense for me to get back in there (in) six or seven months.' Despite the loss to Dvalishvili, O'Malley retained his No. 1 ranking in the official UFC bantamweight rankings in the aftermath of UFC 316. Dvalishvili moved to the No. 2 spot in the UFC pound-for-pound rankings, jumping over UFC heavyweight champ Jon Jones with his win, and is likely to face Cory Sandhagen in his next title defense. We will have more news on Sean O'Malley and Merab Dvalishvili as it becomes available.
