ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion Mikey Musumeci expects that both Demetrious Johnson and Adriano Moraes will take a more cautious approach in their trilogy bout at ONE Fight Night 10: Johnson vs. Moraes III.
Johnson and Moraes are 1-1 in their head-to-head rivalry for the ONE flyweight world title, with both of their wins coming by way of spectacular knockouts. This dynamic, Musumeci believes, will have a huge impact in the rivals’ third bout this May 5 at 1stBank Center in Colorado.
In an interview with the South China Morning Post, Mikey Musumeci said:
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“You know this match is so hard because both guys have finished each other before. So they’re both gonna have a certain respect for each other that they know make one mistake they could get knocked out, right?”
Moraes was the first to score a win in the rivalry when he knocked out Johnson with a grounded knee strike in the second round of their match at ONE on TNT I in April 2021. ‘Mikinho’ didn’t just retain the flyweight belt after the match, but he also became the first person ever to finish Johnson.
More than a year later, it was Johnson who dished out the punishment.
Johnson got his revenge when he slept Moraes with a flying knee in the fourth round of their rematch at ONE on Prime Video 1 in August 2022 to become the ONE flyweight world champion. In doing so, Johnson became the first man to hold world titles in both ONE Championship and UFC.
While Musumeci wants to see the conclusion of the Johnson-Moraes trilogy, he has his fight to prepare for. ‘Darth Rigatoni’ will defend the ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion against the debuting Osamah Almarwai at ONE Fight Night 10.
The match will be Musumeci’s second world title defense following his dominant victory against Gantumur Bayanduuren. Musumeci, who’s also a five-time BJJ world champion, is 3-0 in his ONE Championship run, while ‘Osa’ is coming off an amazing campaign in 2022.
Osamah Almarwai is 22-5 in his professional career and became a No-Gi IBJJF world champion in 2022.
ONE Fight Night 10 will be streamed live and for free in North America via Prime Video.
Watch Musumeci's entire interview below: