“Big money” - Mikey Musumeci feels ONE Championship represents the highest tier of submission grappling

Mikey Musumeci explained why he stopped competing in high-profile submission grappling tournaments. Earlier this month, the submission grappling community was treated to two world-class events - ADCC and the Craig Jones Invitational.

Among the two tournaments were many of the best grapplers on the planet. Meanwhile, ONE flyweight king Mikey Musumeci didn't compete in either showcase.

During an interview with Cageside Press, Musumeci had this to say about focusing on ONE Championship and not wanting to compete in tournaments:

"You go in and win, you build your name, and then you start making more money with professional matches, like big money. I feel like that's the mindset, and I think those tournaments are a great purpose for that. But if you're already in the tournaments where you're making money, like the competition, like the events, why the hell am I going to go down and do a tournament? Does that make sense?"

Mikey Musumeci made his ONE Championship debut in April 2022. Since then, the American superstar has become a 3x flyweight submission grappling world champion, including wins against Jarred Brooks, Gabriel Sousa, Shinya Aoki, Osamah Almarwai, and Masakazu Iminari.

Watch Musumeci's entire interview with Cageside Press below:

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Mikey Musumeci looks to become two-division world champion with win at ONE 168: Denver

Mikey Musumeci has separated himself as the most dominant submission grappler at flyweight. On Sept. 6, the 28-year-old has an opportunity to separate himself as a two-division world champion when he moves up lightweight at ONE 168: Denver and challenges Kade Ruotolo for his strap.

Similar to Musumeci, Ruotolo remains undefeated under the ONE banner (6-0). Furthermore, the 21-year-old has become a superstar with performances outside of the promotion by becoming an ADCC world champion in 2023 and securing $1 million in the Craig Jones Invitational earlier this month.

Ruotolo vs. Musumeci goes down in the ONE 168: Denver co-main event. Tickets for the event inside the Ball Arena, which features Jonathan Haggerty vs Superlek in the headliner, can be found on Ticketmaster.