BJJ superstar Kade Ruotolo recently shared a captivating story of a chance encounter with boxer Ryan Garcia that nearly escalated into a physical altercation. The incident occurred shortly after Kade’s brother, Tye Ruotolo, had competed in a major grappling event.
Kade explained that he, Tye, Kade’s girlfriend, and a few others had gone to get dessert in Huntington Beach when they spotted the popular boxer and his crew. Eager to meet Nate Diaz, Kade approached him and the two exchanged pleasantries, even snapping a photo together.
However, the situation quickly took an unexpected turn when Ryan Garcia suddenly emerged from a nearby vehicle and confronted Kade aggressively. “He starts like, ‘Why you taking pictures with Nate? Why you taking…’ right up in my face,” Kade recounted to sportskeeda.
Feeling the tension escalate, Kade pushed Garcia back, at which point the boxer’s “eyes got all big” as if he was prepared to fight. “I thought he was going to scrap, I was like, ‘That’s an easy one,'” Kade said.
Rather than engaging directly, Garcia then attempted to use his bodyguard as a shield, pushing the larger man towards Kade. Kade found himself squaring off with Garcia’s bodyguard, though he ultimately avoided any physical altercation.
According to Kade, Garcia eventually apologized, seemingly realizing he had taken the situation too far. “He said, ‘You’d probably break my arm,’ and all this stuff,” Kade said, suggesting Garcia recognized the danger of challenging the accomplished BJJ star and ADCC champion.
Tye Ruotolo returns against Jozef Chen July 6 at ONE Fight Night 23: Ok vs. Rasulov at 7 a.m. ICT.
