Tye Ruotolo, Victor Hugo Score Submissions at ONE Bangkok

Jiu-Jitsu took over Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, on Friday, November 6. Tye Ruotolo submitted Christian Lee in the first round to win the ONE Lightweight MMA World Title, and Victor Hugo made his ONE debut with a rear-naked choke on Devhonte Johnson at 1:35.

Neither fight made it out of the first round. For Tye, the win came with a world title, and for Victor Hugo, it ended a rivalry that had been on hold for almost ten years.

Tye drops Lee, then takes the back

In The Inner Circle 37 main event, Lee switched stances to match the southpaw Ruotolo and worked his jab and low kicks. Tye stayed patient behind a high guard. After a spinning kick, Lee’s hands dropped, and Tye landed a right hook and a left to the chin that put him down.

Ruotolo moved to side control, then mount, and took the back when Lee tried to scramble out. He locked in a body triangle and sank the rear-naked choke. Lee tapped at 2:08 of round one.

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“I 100% wanted to get it done in the first round,” Ruotolo said after the fight. “Got it done. So I’m super stoked.”

The win makes him 3-0 in MMA. According to ONE, he is the first athlete in the promotion’s history to hold World Titles in both submission grappling and MMA. He was already the ONE Welterweight Submission Grappling World Champion, and he also earned a US$100,000 bonus from ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong.

Sick all week

Ruotolo revealed he was not feeling well during fight week.

“All week I felt pretty crappy, you know, kind of going through some sickness and just feeling pretty crappy,” he said. “Every time someone asked if I was ready for five rounds, I was just lying out my teeth.”

He also pointed to the striking work that set up the finish. “A year ago, that punch of mine was terrible. And today, it was the one that dropped them.”

For Lee, the fight was personal. He was trying to avenge his younger brother, Adrian Lee, who suffered his first pro loss against Ruotolo. Lee still holds the ONE Welterweight MMA World Title, which was not on the line.

Looking ahead, Ruotolo said he will defend his grappling belt in a couple of months. He would consider moving up in weight someday, after adding muscle. “But 170 is my healthy weight,” he said.

Victor Hugo needs 95 seconds

At ONE Fight Night 49, on the same night and in the same stadium, Victor Hugo faced an old rival in his promotional debut. The Brazilian swept Devhonte Johnson with a foot sweep, took the back, won the hand fight and locked the choke across the American’s jaw. The tap came at 1:35 of their openweight submission grappling match.

It was their third meeting. Hugo won the first one at the 2016 IBJJF World Championship, when both were purple belts, with a flying triangle. Johnson evened the series at the 2017 European Championship. Hugo now leads 2-1.

“I had to wait nine years for this rematch,” Hugo told ONE before the fight.

A heavyweight star arrives

Hugo came to Bangkok just weeks after winning the over-99kg division at ADCC 2026, submitting all four of his opponents. In 2023, he won double gold at the IBJJF World Championship, taking the ultra-heavyweight and absolute titles and finishing Erich Munis with a kneebar in the absolute final.

Before the fight, he made his goal clear. “I want to make sure that the heavyweights are not boring to watch,” he told ONE.

His debut lived up to that promise.

What’s next?

Tye became a two-sport champion in just three MMA fights, and Victor Hugo opened the door for ONE’s heavyweight grappling division. Who do you want to see them face next?

Read more:
Diogo Reis vs. Bebeto: the belt Musumeci lost on the scale
Kade Ruotolo vs. Mica Galvão: are exclusive contracts blocking the rematch?