Mikey Musumeci curious to see if his ‘submission mechanics’ will be enough to finish the legendary Shinya Aoki

Mikey Musumeci is uncertain if his skills on the mat will be enough to overcome the size advantage of Japanese lege at ONE Fight Night 15 on October 6 for an openweight submission grappling superfight inside Thailand’s iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium.

It will be Musumeci’s fourth appearance in 2023, having already earned big victories over Gantumur Bayanduuren, Osamah Almarwai, and reigning ONE strawweight world champion Jarred ‘The Monkey God’ Brooks.

Unlike those bouts, Mikey Musumeci will meet Shinya Aoki in an openweight contest. This means neither man will have to make weight for the matchup as they are free to compete at their natural weight.

This will undoubtedly give Shinya Aoki a decided advantage as he typically competes in the lightweight division (170 pounds) compared to Musumeci who currently sits as the flyweight (135 pounds) submission grappling world champion.

Speaking about the challenge that lies before him, the fighter told ONE Championship:

“Will my submission mechanics be efficient enough to finish a guy bigger than me like Shinya?”

Musumeci’s exploits as a BJJ specialist have earned him a reputation as one of the greatest grappler in the world today. However, Shinya Aoki has never shied away from testing his skill against the best of the best.

Besides amassing an impressive 47 career wins and capturing the ONE lightweight world championship, ‘Tobikan Judan’ has also shared the Circle with some of the biggest names in submission grappling, including ‘The Lion Killer’ Garry Tonon, reigning ONE world champion Kade Ruotolo, and former featherweight king Marat Gafurov.

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Amazon Prime Video subscribers in North America can catch all the action at ONE Fight Night 15 live for free in U.S. primetime on October 6.