Kade Ruotolo says "outside reasons" disrupted his preparations for first clash against Tommy Langaker

Kade Ruotolo is often his own worst critic, but it’s that constant strive for perfection that makes him one of the best grapplers on the planet today.

On his return at ONE 165, the ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion will put his belt on the line in a rematch against Tommy Langaker.

The two men faced off with one another at ONE Fight Night 11 last year, where the divisional king kept hold of his title by securing the decision win at the end of 10-minute war.

Despite defending his belt, Ruotolo wasn’t happy with his performance on that night. Hence, he has been making some adjustments ahead of the rematch to try and change the outcome.

The 21-year old grappling phenom told ONE Championship that he believes his preparations last time around were negatively affected by powers beyond his control, but that won’t happen this time around:

“I’m never one to make any excuses, but my last camp was just, you know, nowhere near where I wanted it to be as far as my preparation, due to some outside reasons.”

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Kade Ruotolo being at his best is anyone's worst nightmare

Kade Ruotolo isn’t short on motivation coming into this rematch dispute already holding a win over his upcoming opponent.

Tommy Langaker certainly won’t be short on it either, given that he believes he has far more to offer against an elite grappler like Ruotolo.

With a champion that has been so dominant, the last thing you want is them to be fired up to make a statement with their performance after being unsatisfied the first time around.

Any hope Langaker will have had of catching Ruotolo sleeping is simply not an option in this high-stakes rematch.

ONE 165 airs live on Sunday, January 28, via global pay-per-view on watch.onefc.com.