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Grappling wizard Mikey Musumeci has always been the harshest critic of himself, and it launched him into global stardom with his status as one of the greatest Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu athletes of all time.
However, 'Darth Rigatoni' has also been known to be one of the nicest athletes of his time. In fact, this is his way of protecting the others around him from hearing all of the things he told himself inside his head.
Always striving for greatness, Musumeci will soon embark on another tough challenge in Kade Ruotolo, as he aims to be the first two-division ONE world champion in his discipline at ONE 168: Denver on Sept. 6.
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Earlier, he defeated his old nemesis, Gabriel Sousa, in a tension-filled battle at ONE 167 and shut down the possibility of having a trilogy between them.
Musumeci spoke to Cageside Press ahead of his next epic clash:
"I'm very mean to myself. I'm nice to everyone else because I don't want them to hear the things I call myself in my mind."
With such determination, the showdown between Kade Ruotolo and Mikey Musumeci would be a must-see spectacle for all grappling fans across the globe.
Check out the full interview below:
Mikey Musumeci hunts for double-champ status in ONE Championship
When ONE returns to 'The Mile High City' for its second groundbreaking spectacle in the United States on Sept.6, Mikey Musumeci will be there to shoot for the first-ever double-champ status in submission grappling.
At ONE 168: Denver, 'Darth Rigatoni' is challenging the ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion Kade Ruotolo for his throne, and this has boiled into a fight not to be missed.
While Musumeci recognized that going up against a bigger and equally talented grappler like Ruotolo would not be easy for him, he was undeterred and full of confidence that he would come out as a winner.
But if Ruotolo succeeds in taking the 'W', it will be the fourth time that he defends his title under the ONE banner.
Tickets for ONE 168: Denver are still available via Ticketmaster.
