Tammi Musumeci ready to do battle against “close friend” Amanda Alequin

The Brazilian jiu-jitsu circuit has always been a small community, and it’s no wonder training partners would end up going up against each other in official matches.

Just take the case of Tammi Musumeci and Amanda Alequin.

This pair of BJJ world champions will clash in a strawweight submission grappling match at ONE Fight Night 12 on July 14 at the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok.

Musumeci, the older sister of ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion Mikey Musumeci, revealed in an interview with ONE Championship that she and Alequin were once training partners.

The five-time BJJ world champion said that Alequin is one of her favorite people in the BJJ world. Nevertheless, a match is still a match, and she’ll still head to Thailand to have her arm raised in the end.

“We used to train together a lot, we’re actually close friends. I like her a lot. I think she’s a cool friend.”

Musumeci, just like her brother, is regarded as one of the best submission grapplers of this era, and she quickly proved that in her ONE Championship debut.

The 28-year-old took on fellow BJJ world champion Bianca Basilio at ONE Fight Night 8 this past March in Singapore.

Although the match didn’t end in a tap, Musumeci controlled Basilio throughout the bout with her aggression and constant search for that defining submission hold pushing her to a unanimous decision win.

Alequin, meanwhile, has yet to debut in ONE Championship. Nevertheless, the 28-year-old is one of the most accomplished female grapplers of her generation.

‘Tubby’ is a veteran of the ADCC, IBJJF, and WNO and was a 2016 IBJJ No-Gi world champion.