"Just like I left the last time" - Marcelo Garcia excited to continue where he had left off in massive ONE debut on January 24

The ONE Championship's continuous effort to help the submission grappling grow has allowed them to sign one of the most legendary BJJ athletes in history Marcelo Garcia.

On Jan. 24, Garcia will make his comeback to competition after a lengthy layoff, as he takes on the Japanese icon Masakazu Imanari in an Openweight submission grappling match as part of the exciting ONE 170 card, which goes down inside the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.

Before getting his hands against his fellow submission specialist, the 41-year-old Brazilian superstar recently appeared on The Ariel Helwani Show for an interview, and he looks forward to once again feeling the highest level of competition on the global stage. He said:

"I can have a good time without competing. [But when I do] go and compete, I hope it is just like I felt the last time. I feel like that how I like to go [in] to this match."

Watch Marcelo Garcia's full interview at The Ariel Helwani Show here:

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Marcelo Garcia wants to prove that he's got elite grappling skills despite long layoff

During the same interview with the seasoned MMA journalist, the Brazilian also discussed his intentions to show the world, particularly the combat sports community, that he still has a lot of top-tier mileage on him despite a long sabbatical.

The former multi-time jiu-jitsu world champion and gold medalist stated:

"I'm here to prove that [have] worked hard, that I'm going to display the best technique possible. I want to go there to prove that I have developed a better technique. I'm here to prove, to show to people who watch that I have a very refined technique."