“Maybe in the future” - Mikey Musumeci not closing door on grappling super-fight with Kade Ruotolo

Newly crowned submission grappling king Mikey Musumeci isn’t closing the door entirely on a grappling super-fight with Kade Ruotolo in the near future.

'Darth Rigatoni' is still in a celebratory mood after defeating Brazilian rival Cleber ‘Clandestino’ Sousa for the inaugural ONE flyweight submission grappling world title, which took place in Singapore this past September.

With sports fans playing matchmakers on social media, 19-year-old prodigy Kade Ruotolo has often been the topic of conversation.

ONE Championship asked Mikey Musumeci about the idea of facing the ADCC world champion Kade Ruotolo in a grappling super-fight for the belt. The Italian-American star replied:

“No, because he’s in a weight class like 35 pounds heavier than me. So I’m really just focused on my division right now. Maybe in the future, like one day I’ll want to go up weight classes. I don’t know. But right now I just want to focus on my own division.”

Kade Ruotolo returns to ONE Championship on Friday, October 21, one month after picking up his first ADCC World Championship title. According to FloGrappling, Kade broke the record for being the youngest-ever ADCC champion with a 100% finish rate, surpassing Hall of Famers Rafa Mendes and Kyra Gracie in the process.

Looking to add another belt to his collection, Kade is slated to fight for the inaugural ONE lightweight submission grappling world title against sambo specialist Uali Kurzhev at ONE on Prime Video 3.

So, the idea of meeting Ruotolo in a grappling match is a little far-fetched for Musumeci at the moment, as he’s not wrong in wanting to challenge himself with contenders in his own weight class before considering another.

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Mikey Musumeci wants to be a positive force for next generation of grapplers

Mikey Musumeci has reached the pinnacle of his career by becoming the first-ever ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion.

Knowing this is just the beginning, Musumeci wants to use his platform to lead a new generation of martial artists in a positive way. According to ‘Darth Rigatoni’ you start by practicing honor and dignity in competitions.

Speaking to ONE Championship, Mikey Musumeci explained:

“The thing I like about ONE, very much, is the culture. In America, the culture is a lot about talking crap. It’s not about respect and honor like in martial arts. And the problem with that is we are competing and sparring in front of the next generation. So how are they going to behave? Horribly.”