Mikey Musumeci says he predicted Garry Tonon would finish Shamil Gasanov by kneebar

Mikey Musumeci is one of the very best grapplers in the world, and his status as the ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion is proof of that.

Flying the flag for submission grappling on the global stage of ONE Championship, ‘Darth Rigatoni’ has helped the organization evolve into a home of world-class and elite grapplers.

That isn’t to say that this is a new trend for the promotion, though, which has always had elite grapplers on the roster. One of those standout names is lightweight contender Garry Tonon who made a transition from submission grappling to MMA.

With Musumeci targeting a similar move at some point in his career, he will defend his title next time out against an MMA world champion, Jarred Brooks, at ONE Fight Night 13 on Friday, August 4.

At the recent ONE Fight Night 12 event, Tonon was back in action in a high-stakes lightweight matchup. Weathering a tough opening round against the undefeated Russian contender Shamil Gasanov, Tonon was able to take the fight into his world in the second round.

Famous for his leg attacks, ‘The Lion Killer’ secured a kneebar submission in the second round to win the fight.

In an interview with the South China Morning Post whilst in attendance for ONE Fight Night 12, Mikey Musumeci revealed that he wasn’t surprised by Tonon pulling off his signature move in one of the biggest fights of his career.

He said:

“Yeah, that was my prediction.”

Watch the full interview below:

ONE Fight Night 13 will air live and free via Prime Video for North American viewers with an active subscription.