“Will we see this on April 22?” - Mikey Musumeci training a counter to the Imanari Roll

Mikey Musumeci wants to make sure that Masakazu Imanari will not be able to pull off his signature move easily against him.

Musumeci will make his ONE Championship debut against Imanari at ONE: Eersel vs. Sadikovic on April 22. The pair will compete in a submission grappling contest on the lead card of the event, which will be broadcast live from the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

On Instagram, Musumeci shared a training video of himself at Evolve MMA practicing his defense against the famed “Imanari Roll.”

In the caption, Mikey Musumeci said:

“IMANARI ROLL VS BERIMBOLO - @onechampionship @evolvemma”

According to BJJ Heroes, the Berimbolo is a name coined by Andre Galvao which is a colloquialism in Brazilian Portuguese that means ‘scramble’. It involves a spin on the part of the standing opponent to take control of the back of the person attacking from guard position.

In the comments, ONE color commentator Mitch Chilson asked if it was a preview of what he will do in his upcoming bout.

“Will we see this on April 22?”

Other fans were amazed at how quickly Musumeci pulled off the move. One fan said:

“Sorry I didn’t see what you did my frame rate wasn’t high enough.”

Training to shut down your opponent’s move is normal, especially against those who tend to use it regularly. As such, one fan is hoping to see Imanari’s version of a counter in a future video. The fan said:

“Now I wanna ser Imanari posting ‘Mickey Lock VS Imanari Roll’" 😂”

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Mikey Musumeci and Masakazu Imanari to compete in a submission grappling contest

ONE: Eersel vs. Sadikovic will feature a submission grappling contest between Mikey Musumeci and Masakazu Imanari.

Imanari is a grappling specialist whose penchant for chasing the leg lock gave birth to his signature move, the “Imanari Roll.”

Meanwhile, Musumeci is a rising star in the grappling world, having won multiple world titles in the sport at every level he has competed in. His favorite move, the Berimbolo, looks like it could be the perfect counter to the “Imanari Roll.”

However, it could be easier to practice defending it against a seasoned Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner than doing it against the master of the move, especially if you don’t know when it’s coming.

On April 22, Mikey Musumeci will get the real deal and will hope that his practice pays off in the circle