Regian Eersel And Tye Ruotolo To Defend World Titles At ONE Fight Night 21 On April 5
A pair of exciting World Championship bouts have been confirmed for ONE Fight Night 21: Eersel vs. Nicolas on Prime Video.
On April 5 in U.S. primetime, two-sport king Regian “The Immortal” Eersel will defend his ONE Lightweight Kickboxing World Title against Alexis “Barboza” Nicolas, and Tye Ruotolo will put his ONE Welterweight Submission Grappling World Title on the line against Izaak Michell.
Following a trio of ONE Lightweight Muay Thai World Title victories, Eersel is returning to kickboxing in the main event at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
“The Immortal” has dominated the division since winning the inaugural gold against Nieky “The Natural” Holzken in 2019. He then recorded four straight successful defenses over elite opponents before switching his attention to “the art of eight limbs.”
Overall, the 31-year-old Surinamese superstar has won 22 straight fights – including a 10-0 mark in ONE – dating all the way back to 2016.
However, rising star Nicolas is planning to play spoiler in his promotional debut.
The ISKA Kickboxing World Champion boasts a flawless 23-0 professional record and feels ready to face the best of the best in ONE.
The Frenchman represents Mahmoudi Gym, home to the country’s strongest stable of strikers, and he has the confidence and momentum to bring a tough challenge on April 5.
Meanwhile, Ruotolo is defending his submission grappling throne for the first time in a rescheduled matchup with Michell as he aims to extend his 5-0 slate in the world’s largest martial arts organization.
The 21-year-old BJJ prodigy has submitted three of his ONE opponents – including grappling icon and current #2-ranked featherweight MMA contender Garry “The Lion Killer” Tonon – and has also earned four performance bonuses for his relentless and exciting style.
However, he’ll have a tough test in Australian phenom Michell, who owns an impressive resume and is in top form.
The 25-year-old challenger has won both the Australian and Asia and Oceania ADCC Trials and took the award for best match at the prestigious ADCC World Championship tournament in 2022.
Adding to his win at the IBJJF No-Gi World Championship as a brown belt, the surging grappler now wants to make a statement by claiming World Title gold on the biggest platform of all.
Stay tuned to onefc.com for further updates on ONE Fight Night 21: Eersel vs. Nicolas on Prime Video.
