Most grappling matches start slow. Feeling out, hand-fighting, and waiting for the best moment. So, it’s definitely a rarity when someone runs the ropes and hits a spear as if it were WrestleMania. And that’s exactly what MMA fans witnessed at ONE Fight Night 41, where Tye Ruotolo defended his welterweight submission grappling world title.

The fight itself was high-level, technical, and competitive. But the moment everyone is talking about happened right at the start, and it had nothing to do with submissions. It looked like something straight out of WWE.

Tye Ruotolo opens title defense with spear-like takedown

As soon as the match began, Tye Ruotolo didn’t circle or wait for an opening. He created one instead by bouncing off the ropes, racing forward, and hitting Pawel Jaworski with a spear-style double-leg that immediately reminded fans of Roman Reigns, Goldberg, and Edge.

Ariel Helwani even posted the video on X with the caption “SPEAR! SPEAR! SPEAR!” and the reactions took off from there. And as expected, fans fully leaned into the wrestling comparison. One joked, “Wish he got stuck in them ropes for a 619,” while another said, “Just missing a jackhammer.”

One even tagged Roman Reigns directly, “@WWERomanReigns 🙂.” Several fans loved the energy. “My gawhd!” one wrote, while another added, “Ngl this is sick lol.” More fans chimed in, “Let’s gooo that energy is off the charts, FR. I’m ready to charge with you,” a fan wrote.

The combination of MMA, grappling, and pro-wrestling vibes made the clip impossible to ignore. The strange thing is that, despite the chaotic start, the match itself was really competitive. Pawel Jaworski attacked leg locks early on; both men scrambled frequently, and the challenger even landed a kneebar late in the fight.

Tye Ruotolo escaped, stayed aggressive, and pushed the pace until the final seconds, eventually winning the decision after both fighters scored one catch each. It wasn’t the cleanest domination of his reign, but it was enough to secure his third successful title defense.

Most fans won’t recall the scorecards anyway. They’ll remember the champion running the ropes and starting a world title match with a spear. Not exactly typical grappling. But absolutely entertaining. But it’s not always a win that remains memorable for fight fans, as, on the same day but a different promotion, another fighter went viral despite suffering a defeat.

Ruotolo’s viral move gets competition from a Tuff-N-Uff fighter

Tye Ruotolo’s spear may have stolen the spotlight in ONE Championship, but on the same day, another viral moment came from an entirely different promotion—and this one didn’t even require a win to get people talking. While Ruotolo retained gold, Tuff-N-Uff fighter AJ Hotchkins ended up trending for a moment that had nothing to do with technique.

Before his fight at Tuff-N-Uff 152, AJ Hotchkins entered the cage full of excitement, performing a backflip and jumping around to get the fans excited. Still facing backward, he moved toward the fence without realizing the door was open, falling straight out of the cage.

The viral moment became even more brutal when the fight began. AJ Hotchkins took a brutal kick to the head early in the first round and went down hard, resulting in a quick stoppage that some fans felt was a little early.

He seemed to be hurt but was trying to steady himself against the cage, which led some fans to believe he might have been able to recover. Nonetheless, the referee intervened, and the battle ended in a little over two minutes, turning what started as a funny walkout into a night he probably won’t forget anytime soon. As for the MMA world, Tye Ruotolo and ‘Concrete’ definitely delivered 2026’s highlight moments.