Mikey Musumeci praises Osamah Almarwai’s aggressiveness with submissions

At ONE Fight Night 10 on May 5, flyweight submission grappling world champion Mikey Musumeci will look to defend his title for a second time against Osamah Almarwai.

Whilst Musumeci is excited to compete at ONE Championship’s debut event in the United States in front of his home fans, he knows the threats that his opponent presents.

An IBJJF no-gi world champion, Osamah Almarwai is a member of the Atos Jiu-Jitsu Academy alongside the likes of Kade and Tye Ruotolo. Known for an aggressive style that chains together submission attacks, the Ruotolo brothers have established themselves as two of the most exciting competitors in the world, and Almarwai carries a similar skill set.

In an interview with the Jiu-jitsu Times, reigning world champion Mikey Musumeci spoke about the dangers of facing a competitor like Almarwai and why he is excited for the matchup:

“Some guys win titles, but have zero submission attempts in their matches. Osamah, in every match, is attacking submissions.”

Musumeci has first-hand experience of watching his upcoming opponent at work. In December, he attended the no-gi world championships to coach his friends. One of which, Izutsu, was defeated by Almarwai in the semi-finals.

The matchup is set for ONE Fight Night 10, live from the 1st Bank Center in Colorado on May 5. The entire event is live and free for North American viewers with a Prime Subscription.

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WATCH: Mikey Musumeci’s journey from nerdy kid to grappling phenom

ONE Championship’s flyweight submission grappling world champion Mikey Musumeci is the definition of a prodigy. At just 26 years old, he’s accomplished enough in his career to justify calling time on his life as a competitor, but he is still just scratching the surface.

‘Darth Rigatoni’ hasn’t just won a lot of accolades, he’s broken new ground for submission grapplers as the first ever submission grappling world champion under the ONE banner. In addition, he was the first American competitor to win an IBJJF world title five times.

On top of that, he is one of the most unassuming elite athletes in the world. Coming from humble beginnings in New Jersey, ONE Championship recently shared a video that documents his rise to the very top of professional grappling.

By falling in love with jiu-jitsu at a young age and training for hours on end with his sister Tammi, Mikey Musumeci has become one of the greatest to ever do it, and that’s a scary thought considering how early on in his career he still is.

Here's the video:

At ONE on Prime Video 2 in October 2022, Musumeci defeated Cleber Souza to make history under the ONE Championship banner. He has since gone on to defend his crown with a dominant performance against Gantumur Bayanduuren at ONE Fight Night 6 this past January.