At Nocera on 24 July 1132, Ranulf was allied with Robert II of Capua and Sergius VII of Naples and he was a mere rebel, fighting the king of Sicily.

On 30 October 1137, Ranulf was the recently appointed duke of Apulia, with a contingent of 800 German troops on loan from the Emperor Lothair II, and his adversaries were not only Roger, but his erstwhile ally Sergius.

King Roger decided to attack at Rignano, the Balcone delle Puglie, where Monte Gargano drops off steeply over the Apulia plain.

Though both Rogers survived to make it to Salerno, Sergius lay dead on the field and Ranulf's claim to the duchy was vindicated.

The battle had, like Nocera, little lasting effect because the cities of Campania did not revolt as expected, but Ranulf was safe in Apulia until his death two years later.