Reinier “The Dutch Knight” de Ridder recognizes talent when he sees it, and that’s exactly what he notices in his upcoming opponent Tye Ruotolo, who he faces in a submission grappling showcase at ONE Fight Night 10: Johnson vs. Moraes III on May 5. The pair are set to collide just before the main card kicks off at 1stBank Center in Denver, Colorado, in what is already seen as one of the most hotly anticipated bouts on the stacked lineup.

De Ridder returns for his second grappling-only match in the Circle against one of the finest practitioners of the discipline in recent times, and he’s well aware that he’ll need to be in tip-top condition to slug it out with Ruotolo for 10-straight minutes.

Reinier De Ridder eyes to get hold of Tye Ruotolo despite a few similarities

The American BJJ phenom is much-lauded for his unique skill set, but ONE’s middleweight MMA king sees a lot of similarities between him and his young foe. Speaking to ONE Championship, De Ridder said, “I think we might be very similar. We hit a lot of the same moves. We both rely on our stand-up game. We’re both very into takedowns and different stuff. I think there are more similarities in our games than differences.”

Though he recognizes a likeness between their grappling techniques, the Breda native knows he’ll hold a solid advantage in one area when the Circle door closes on May 5.

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With nine fights in the promotion, De Ridder views his experience as the trump card against Ruotolo.

Reinier De Ridder would have an edge due to his experience

He added, “A big difference is I’m used to the cage, and I think both of them are looking to the future to start their MMA journey as well. So, I think they might be cage-wrestling for a little bit. But I’ve been cage-wrestling half my life.”

A victory over Ruotolo is just what “The Dutch Knight” needs after he dropped his ONE Light Heavyweight World Title to Anatoly “Sladkiy” Malykhin in December last year.

READ MORE – “I’m Going to Start Off Where I Left Off” – Demetrious Johnson Predicts a Dominant End to Trilogy Against Adriano Moraes

De Ridder suffered the first defeat of his promotional tenure when he was knocked out cold by the Russian colossus, and a win next month will allow him to regain some much-needed confidence as he aims to make the most of 2023.