ONE Flyweight Submission Grappling World Champion Mikey Musumeci is one of the legends of the sport. The American is a four-time World Champion and a Pan-American Champion in colored belts. He is also a five-time IBJJF black belt World Champion and holds the record of being the first American to win more than one IBJJF World Title at black belt. However, the 28-year-old is worried about the “fake” BJJ culture and shared his opinion on the whole. 

He said, “I’m just so sick of this fake culture in jiu-jitsu – it’s double standards for everything, honestly, and it’s basically like there’s so much bad in the sport with, like, kids taking drugs and steroids, and nobody says anything about it. And they’re even praising these people. That’s what makes me insane.

However, the 28-year-old is confident that things will eventually improve in the long run and added, “But I am confident long term as jiu-jitsu gets more and more money, it’s going to change, and we’re on the right path. We are. I just have to not end up in a mental hospital before then.” Let us take a closer look at the grappling division in ONE Championship and the impact Musumeci has had on it. 

Mikey Musumeci and his dominance in ONE Championship’s grappling division 

Since making his debut in ONE Championship, Mikey Musumeci is yet to be defeated in the flyweight division. However, more than the record, it’s his dominance that has impressed one and all. ONE Championship conducts regular drug tests, which are not very prevalent in other BJJ competitions. “Natural” athletes like Musumeci, the Ruotolo twins, as well as women’s atomweight stars Danielle Kelly and current titleholder Mayssa Bastos have shown that performance-enhancing drugs are not essential in showcasing world-class talent. 

The 28-year-old has always been vocal about the usage of drugs in the sport and wants to change this in the future. During the interview, he emphasized the point and said, “I’m American, and America with our sports, like football, baseball, these certain sports, we have better values in these ways. So we could do better, us Americans, in what we’re supporting, and it’s bringing out a bad quality in people right now who are supporting jiu-jitsu.”

Musumeci’s next opponent, Kade Ruotolo, is also known for being a clean athlete in the sport of BJJ. The pair are considered two of the best in the sport of grappling and will collide against each other at ONE 168: Denver. Ruotolo will be defending his ONE Lightweight Submission Grappling World Title against an opponent whom he respects a lot. But what exactly will be his game plan for the night? Let us find out. 

Kade Ruotolo is confident of defending his title against Mikey Musumeci at ONE 168 

There are few fighters in ONE Championship who are as skillful as Ruotolo and Musumeci. Both fighters have achieved a lot in their grappling careers but are still finding ways to challenge themselves. As a result, they will now test themselves against each other in a highly exciting grappling contest. Musumeci will be moving up three weight classes to win a second title. However, the champion, Kade Ruotolo, is not worried about the hype surrounding his challenger.

The 21-year-old can be considered one of the most creative grapplers in the promotion and is confident about his skill level. Ruotolo is fresh off winning US$1 million at the Craig Jones Invitational and has shown that he is in sublime form. However, he is not taking Musumeci lightly, rather, has found a weakness in his game. During an interview with ONE Championship, the American grappler pointed out that Musumeci’s rigid style might just lead to his downfall.

He said, “If I’m hand fighting someone and it’s not really going my way or whatever – if I’m trying to wrestle, and I can’t – I’m going to pull guard. I’m going to get on their legs. I’m going to do anything in my power to find their weakness and execute that window.” However, he then made it clear that ‘Darth Rigatoni’ might not be willing to change his fighting style, which might hamper his chances.

“I don’t think Mikey is quite prepared to go that route. I think he’ll try the same strategy for 10 minutes straight. If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work” added the champion. 

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