Kade Ruotolo to continue MMA conquest against dangerous finisher at ONE 171: Qatar 

ONE Lightweight Submission Grappling World Champion Kade Ruotolo has enjoyed a smooth transition into the MMA world. But the road is about to get much rougher.  

At ONE 171: Qatar on Thursday, February 20, Ruotolo welcomes unbeaten Argentinian Nicolas Vigna to ONE Championship’s lightweight MMA division inside Lusail Sports Arena.  

Ruotolo has quickly found his footing in the all-encompassing sport. The American got off the mark with a first-round submission of Blake Cooper last June at ONE 167. He followed up with an absolute blitzing of divisional mainstay Ahmed Mujtaba at ONE 169 in November.

The 22-year-old showed the evolution of his striking game against Mujtaba, too, knocking him down before submitting him. But his upcoming foe is on a similar trajectory. 

Vigna arrives in ONE Championship with a 7-0 record. To bolster that, he’s also finished every opponent along the way with a mixture of submission and knockout wins.  

His skill set will certainly prove a worthy test for his fellow unbeaten foe in Ruotolo, who welcomes the greater challenge with open arms.  

“Looking forward to continue improving in all aspects of life,” Ruotolo said on Instagram.  

Kade Ruotolo looks to hand Nicolas Vigna the first loss of his MMA career at ONE 171

The challenges continue to evolve for ONE Lightweight Submission Grappling World Champion Kade Ruotolo.  

After a perfect 2024 that saw him defend his lightweight submission grappling crown and pick up two MMA wins on the bounce, Ruotolo is all about getting 2025 off to a great start.  

But when he faces fellow unbeaten talent in Nicolas Vigna at ONE 171, there will be plenty more at stake. 

At this point, Ruotolo is an established name across two sports in ONE Championship. So, victory over him in either discipline is a huge boost for any adversary.  

Meanwhile, Ruotolo has the chance to register a new first in his career – handing Vigna his first loss. Should he topple a fellow prolific finisher, Ruotolo will take another huge step up the division towards the top five contenders.