Mikey Musumeci maintains utmost respect for upcoming opponent Osamah Almarwai

Jiu-jitsu wizard Mikey Musumeci has always shown respect to his rivals, but none with more praise than his upcoming opponent Osamah Almarwai.

‘Darth Rigatoni’ happily signed his next grappling bout, which is set to take place at ONE Fight Night 10: Johnson vs. Moraes III on Friday, May 5, on US soil. He will face IBJJF no-gi world champion and Atos Jiu-Jitsu Gym representative ‘Osa’ Osamah Almarwai.

Familiar with Almarwai's submission-oriented grappling style after having seen him compete at the 2022 IBJJF tournament, Musumeci believes they’re the perfect match stylistically to keep the fans on the edge of their seats.

In an interview with Jiu-jitsu Times, the Italian-American grappler had this to say about ‘Osa’:

“He’s a finisher, he’s smart with the rules, and he’s very technical – I respect him a lot, and that’s why I really wanted this match. I think it’ll be beautiful for the American fans to watch.”

Mikey Musumeci will enter his fourth bout in the promotion after capturing three straight victories under his belt. Scoring a beautiful rear-naked choke in his promotional debut, Musumeci single-handedly turned MMA fans into believers.

He did it again recently when he retained his flyweight belt in a one-sided match against sambo world champion Gantumur Bayanduuren at ONE Fight Night 6: Superbon vs. Allazov.

Meanwhile, exciting up-and-comer Osamah Almarwai recently earned first place in his rookie year at the 2022 IBJJF no-gi world championship at 127 lbs to become the first Yemen-born grappler to win a gold medal. Taking with him the knowledge and training he has under BJJ coach Andre Galvao, ‘Osa’ will be Musumeci’s most dangerous opponent to date.

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Mikey Musumeci has MMA superstar Adriano Moraes on his hit list for a submission grappling match

Despite having his next bout booked, Mikey Musumeci still has his eye on MMA superstar Adriano Moraes for a potential submission grappling showdown in the near future.

‘Mikinho’ is also headed for a flyweight war on the same billing as Musumeci to recapture his flyweight belt against reigning world champion ‘Mighty Mouse’ Demetrious Johnson in Denver, Colorado.

Despite both superstars being busy with their upcoming matches, a potential match in the grappling arts between the pair is still something Musumeci is interested in pursuing.

In a past interview with ONE, Mikey Musumeci explained why he thinks Moraes would be his ideal opponent for his next world title defense:

“He’s a black belt in jiu-jitsu also, and he actually requested to have a match with me multiple times. So, I think we should just do it in Brazil. ONE is going to have their first card in Brazil this year, and I’m fluent in Portuguese, and I have a lot of Brazilian followers, also. So, it would be great for the Brazilian crowd.”