'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Mikey Musumeci hopes to schedule his next ONE Championpionship submission grappling match for April.
In 2022, Musumeci signed with ONE as a significant contributor to the promotion’s expansion into submission grappling. ‘Darth Rigatoni’ came in as a well-respected jiu-jitsu competitor and took his combat sports career to a different level after joining forces with ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong.
Musumeci started with a rear-naked choke submission win in his promotional debut against Masakazu Imanari. The American superstar followed up his impressive performance with a unanimous decision victory against Cleber Sousa to become the inaugural ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion.
Trending
Since then, Musumeci has secured world title defenses against Gantumur Bayanduuren, Osamah Almarwai, and Jarred Brooks. The 27-year-old last competed in October 2023, defeating Shinya Aoki in an openweight bout to extend his promotional record to 6-0.
Musumeci recently took to his Instagram stories to tease his next submission grappling match:
“Record in One championship 6-0 hopefully in April 7-0 god willing inshaAllah”
Mikey Musumeci says he would be ‘honored’ to face Nate Diaz in a grappling match
Mikey Musumeci has become one of the most recognized superstars on the ONE Championship roster. ‘Darth Rigatoni’ has used his platform to call out opponents for potential super-fights, including ONE flyweight MMA world champion Demetrious Johnson.
Musumeci recently shared an Instagram video revealing MMA legend Nate Diaz called him out for a grappling match. The ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion responded by saying:
“Wow, so I just learned from my video that Nate Diaz called me out, and in no way am I calling him out right now, this is just me responding to that video. The first thing I’ll say is I’ve always been a huge fan of watching Nick and Nate Diaz in MMA, they’re absolute legends. Amazing grappling, amazing striking, and they’re about that life.”
Musumeci continued:
“Obviously, I can’t fight Nate in an MMA fight. He would kill me, but I would absolutely accept a grappling match with him since we’re both black belts in jiu-jitsu. It would be an absolute honor to have the opportunity to face such a legend like Nate. A once in a lifetime opportunity, right? I don’t care about weight class or anything, I would be a hundred percent down to grapple with him.”
In September 2022, Diaz announced he was parting ways with the UFC to pursue opportunities outside the octagon. He utilized his much-desired freedom to book a boxing match against Jake Paul in his lone fight since, which he lost by unanimous decision.
