Kade Ruotolo is one of the most likable figures in the world of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. One of the factors that makes him a popular figure is how he remains grounded despite an ever-growing list of accolades in his flourishing career.

This year alone, the 19-year-old inked a deal with ONE Championship, became the youngest ADCC World Champion in history, and captured the inaugural ONE Lightweight Submission Grappling World Championship.

Kade Ruotolo impressed even the Meta CEO

Ruotolo is currently in the final stages of preparation to defend his ONE gold against Matheus Gabriel at ONE on Prime Video 5, which goes down this Friday, December 2, at the Mall of Asia Arena in Manila, Philippines. His success over the past six months has not only gained him a huge following but has helped Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu grow in popularity around the world.

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One person who has taken note of the Californian BJJ phenom is American business magnate, internet entrepreneur, and philanthropist Mark Zuckerberg. 

The co-founder and CEO of Meta (formerly known as Facebook) made his admiration for the Ruotolo public after he claimed the lightweight submission grappling gold against Uali Kurzhev at ONE on Prime Video 3 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Zuckerberg commented on the World Champion’s post shortly after his triumph: “Congrats! That was a dominant performance.”

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Everything Kade executed to pick up the gold that night involved a blend of basic maneuvers and advanced techniques. And while casual onlookers might have found it confusing to follow, Zuckerberg clearly didn’t.

The tech billionaire, after all, isn’t a stranger to the sport.He has been training in both variants of the discipline – gi and no-gi – and in a recent episode of Joe Rogan’s podcast, he described jiu-jitsu as the best sport in the world.

Kade Ruotolo intends to assist Mark Zuckerberg with Jiu-Jitsu if required

Though Zuckerberg still holds a white belt in the sport, the lightweight submission grappling king admitted that he would be more than willing to assist the tech expert with his knowledge of BJJ.

Ruotolo said: 

“Mark Zuckerberg commenting on that post was huge for us. It was super cool. Just to see his interest in the sport, in general, was super cool to see. He’s kind of a legend of legends, you know? He’s a pioneer in a lot of ways. And a lot of people look up to him.”

.“Just by him showing an interest, training in the sport himself, I think it’s bringing a lot of different eyes to the sport. It’s really cool to see, and I’m more than willing to get a training session in with him if he’s open to it.” 

Kade’s twin brother, with whom he shares an Instagram account, shared a similar appreciation for Zuckerberg.

Tye Ruotolo was startled at Mark Zuckerberg’s wish for his brother

Tye, who takes on former ONE Featherweight World Champion Marat “Cobra” Gafurov on the ONE on Prime Video 5 card, also shared that he’s been impressed with the growth of the sport this year.

The grappling star said:

“I mean. That’s unreal. It’s crazy what’s happening in jiu-jitsu. It’s growing, you know, at such a rapid pace, and I remember jiu-jitsu, even ten years ago, it was so hard to make a living from it, you know. There weren’t too many eyes on the sport.” 

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“There’s a lot to see, there’s a lot to learn, and there’s a lot of history in jiu-jitsu as well. It’s an amazing sport. So to see it getting the attention it deserves, I think ONE has a big part to do with that too. So yeah, it’s just amazing to see it for sure. Thanks, Zuck. You da man.”