After dominating his division with three successful defenses of the ONE Flyweight Submission Grappling World Title, Mikey Musumeci sought to challenge himself by taking on a legend in a higher-weight division. At ONE Fight Night 15 last October, ‘Darth Rigatoni’ scored his third consecutive submission victory when he defeated Japanese martial arts icon Shinya Aoki. 

The move he used to end the clash was an Aoki Lock, which was invented by the Japanese martial arts icon himself. ONE Championship shared the video on their Instagram channel where Musumeci honored the legend with an inspiring post-fight speech. 

The 28-year-old said, “The position I hit is called an Aoki Lock. It’s a modified heel hook. But I learned this position from from Shinya Aoki. It’s his submission that he invented. When I think of a master of Jiu- Jitsu it’s somebody that inspires another generation. They are doing the positions that you created. Shinya deserves so much credit. I did his move on him. That’s like a master to student. I was such a big fan of Shinya growing up . Now I’m doing his position on him. He’s an idol of mine for being forty years old and still competing, challenging himself. That’s a champion. ” The fans took notice of the video and shared their opinion on the whole. 

Mikey Musumeci brings out mixed reactions from the fans after explaining the Aoki lock  

The 28-year-old just took over three minutes to win his fight at the Lumpinee in Bangkok, Thailand. However, just like most occasions, Musumeci was respectful towards his opponent and had nothing but praise for the 40-year-old. The whole gesture was praised by fans, who shared their opinion in the comments section. 

UFC standout Merab Dvalishvili commended the act, writing, “I like this respect”. One of the users pointed as to how the 28-year-old first decimated his opponent and later went on to appreciate him by commenting, “Bro said after committing violence.”  Musucmeci is fairly active on social media and often uploads training videos to share his grappling knowledge. He has a unique way of explaining things which one user pointed out as, “Mikey always looks like he’s explaining calculus when he’s explaining how to rip a leg off.” 

“Darth Rigatoni” is not only known for his outstanding fighting skills but also because of his humble nature. He rarely indulges in any kind of trash talking and one of his fans appreciated that, “Least humble flex. Respect for natural status tho ”  One more user appreciated his behavior as he showed his gratitude towards one of the legends of the sport, “Love your humility and vulnerability, Mikey. You’re showing a very ‘ alpha’ world True strength comes from those traits not aggression and ego. This applies to your openness about depression, anxiety etc. Respect ”

At 40 years of age, Aoki took on an in-form Musumeci and lost the battle. But it seems he still won in the hearts of many as the flyweight submission grappling king showed his respect towards him by using his submission “If a young champion beats u( you) with a submission named after u( you) then u(you) still win” 

The 28-year-old is scheduled to take on Kade Ruotolo in one of the most anticipated fights of the year. Both fighters will fight each other in September and predictions have started to flow in, “I think Mikey is awesome but think Kade will take the win in this match.”  

ONE Championship shared the video on their Instagram page prior to his fight against Kade Ruotolo. Both fighters are at the pinnacle of their career and will look to get past each other on September 6. But what exactly does Ruotolo feel about his opponent? Let us find out. 

Kade Ruotolo is nothing but excited to face Mikey Musumeci next 

At ONE 167, both Kade Ruotolo and Mikey Musumeci managed to win their respective fights convincingly. Musumeci took on Gabriel Sousa while Ruotolo featured in his MMA debut. However, the pair seemed more excited about their upcoming clash at ONE 168: Denver. “Darth Rigatoni” is moving three weight classes up to challenge the ONE Lightweight Submission Grappling World Champion. A clash of this level often ends up with the fighters wanting to prove themselves as the best. However, this is not the case this time around. 

After his ONE 167 victory, Ruotolo took out time to share his excitement about the clash. According to the Californian, the clash is significant not only because they are the best, but because they are also steroid-free – a sad rarity in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu currently. He said, “I think it’s just an epic moment for jiu-jitsu. I think the super special thing about it is that two natural athletes competing at the highest level. At the highest levels, it’s been really difficult to see that and keeping it steroid-free at the highest level of technique colliding, it’s gonna be an amazing fight and I’m looking forward to it.” Musumeci is also excited about the clash and made it clear that he wants to test himself against the best and is also looking forward to the clash. 

Who do you think will win between the two? Let us know in the comments below.