Osamah Almarwai credits ONE Championship for bringing grappling to the mainstream

At ONE Fight Night 10 on Prime Video, Osamah Almarwai has a huge opportunity on his hands.

Stepping inside the circle for the very first time as a decorated submission grappler, he will challenge Mikey Musumeci for the ONE flyweight submission grappling world championship.

As if that stage wasn’t big enough for his ONE Championship debut, Almarwai will also compete on ONE Championship’s debut event in the United States. Live from the 1stBank Center in Colorado on May 5, the event is shaping up to be one of the biggest the promotion has ever put on.

Ahead of his contest with Musumeci, Almarwai said in an interview that he is a big admirer of the work that the promotion is doing in promoting submission grappling and helping to give it a larger platform.

He told ONE Championship:

“Man, it means so much to me. Because first of all, I appreciate what ONE is doing for grappling overall. And whether I’m there or not, they’re putting grappling in the mainstream now. Everybody knows about jiu-jitsu and grappling, and they’re making it exciting.”

Almarwai vs. Mikey Musumeci is one of three world championship clashes scheduled for ONE Fight Night 10, with Demetrious Johnson and Rodtang Jitmuangnon also set to put their respective world titles on the line.

ONE Fight Night 10 is ONE Championship’s fifth Amazon card of the year and will be broadcast live and for free to all Prime Video subscribers in North America.

---

Osamah Almarwai says he was excited when Mikey Musumeci called him out

Osamah Almarwai has had his sights set on challenging ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion Mikey Musumeci for some time.

Following his first world title defense at ONE Fight Night 6 in January, Musumeci named Almarwai as a potential opponent for his next contest inside the circle.

In a recent interview with ONE Championship, Almarwai spoke about he felt when he heard the world champion namedrop him as a future challenger:

“[When Mikey mentioned my name], I was like, ‘Yeah, let’s do it.’ I was excited. I think this match makes sense the most because it’s the current [IBJJF No-Gi] World Champion and the No.1-ranked black belt against the ONE World Champion. So I was excited when I heard the callout. I was like, ‘Let’s go.’”

At ONE Fight Night 10 on May 5, Musumeci and Almarwai will clash at the 1stBank Center in Colorado.

The world champion has had first-hand experience watching his next opponent compete after attending the 2022 ADCC world championships.

As a member of Andre Galvao’s ATOS team, Almarwai has real credibility as the first ever BJJ black belt from Yemen. Training alongside the likes of Kade and Tye Ruotolo, Almarwai is not an opponent that can be taken lightly.