Tye Ruotolo wants to compete at ONE 169: “It would be such a great opportunity”

Tye Ruotolo doesn’t plan on remaining idle in the coming months. 

Following his hard-fought victory over Jozef Chen in a 186-pound non-title catchweight bout earlier this month, the reigning ONE Welterweight Submission Grappling World Champion wants to return to action.

In fact, he has his sights on competing at the highly-anticipated ONE 169: Atlanta on November 8. The event takes place at the State Farm Arena.

“I can’t wait to be able to compete back home, for sure. It would be such a great opportunity. I know the Atlanta card, there are already some epic matches on there. So if I could get on that card, that would be amazing,” he said.

So far, ONE Championship has announced three bouts for its second scheduled trip to the U.S. this year.

Headlining the festivities is the ONE Heavyweight MMA World Title clash between three-division king Anatoly Malykhin and “Reug Reug” Oumar Kane.

Adding to the anticipation, Christian Lee returns to action to defend his ONE Lightweight MMA World Championship against Alibeg Rasulov.

Meanwhile, Tawanchai PK Saenchai and “Smokin’” Jo Nattawut run it back for the ONE Featherweight Muay Thai World Title.

While there’s a possibility that Ruotolo may end up showcasing his skills on that card, he’s even more excited about what the future holds for the promotion as it continues to build its presence in the American market.

“I’m grateful for what the year looks like in the future. I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of big events and I’m excited to get into [them],” the young American phenom said.

Tye Ruotolo wishes to lock horns with Nicholas Meregali

Tye Ruotolo has been vocal about his desire to face Nicholas Meregali next in ONE.

He has been chasing a rematch with the Brazilian for quite some time, hoping to settle some unfinished business.

“We’ve been trying to get Meregali for a long time. I guess he’s very difficult to work with, I don’t know, but I just think he doesn’t really want to fight, to be honest with you,” Ruotolo said.

However, Ruotolo made it clear that he’s willing to face other opponents if the opportunity with Meregali doesn’t materialize.

“If not Meregali, it doesn’t really matter,” he said. “Whoever ONE feels like they want to put in front of me next, I’m ready for anything.”