Mikey Musumeci is very frustrated by the continued sexualization of women in combat sports.
Musumeci, ONE Championship’s reigning flyweight submission grappling world champion, has quickly become one of the biggest names in Brazilian jiu-jitsu over the last year. Scoring his fourth-straight win inside the Circle at ONE Fight Night 10, Musumeci is immensely proud of jiu-jitsu’s growth in recent years and the role he’s been able to play in it.
However, ‘Darth Rigatoni’ isn’t exactly thrilled with everything going on in the sport, particularly when it comes to the way female competitors are viewed versus their male counterparts. In a recent interview with the Jiu-Jitsu Times, Musumeci said:
“I think that it’s very discouraging as a high-level woman competitor in jiu-jitsu today, because a lot of women feel that they have to sell themselves with sex appeal and do all these different things, and it’s kind of ridiculous how it is in society today,” Musumeci said. “And it can make a girl feel discouraged to keep competing if that’s the way that you get publicity.”
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While some women in combat sports have embraced using their undeniable sex appeal in order to garner attention on social media, it is fair to say that female competitors who choose not to flaunt their wares for clicks can often be overlooked in other major promotions.
It’s a harsh reality that not only speaks on the state of women in sports but emphasizes a very clear societal difference between men and women in general, particularly in the age of social media and subscription-based websites like OnlyFans and FanTime.
Fortunately, promotions, like ONE Championship, still exist to promote the best fighters in the world, regardless of their gender or quote-unquote sex appeal.