Mikey Musumeci, the current world champion in submission grappling at the flyweight class in the ONE Championship, is unquestionably one of the top grapplers in the world at his weight class right now. This claim is sufficiently supported by his perfect record of 5-0 in competitions run by the greatest martial arts organization in the world, as well as his status as a multiple-time IBJJF world champion.
Recently, it was revealed that “Darth Rigatoni” would compete against the legendary Shinya Aoki of Japan in a submission grappling bout at open weight on October 6 as part of ONE Fight Night 15. However, the 27-year-old fighter stated in a recent interview that he is prepared to step outside of his comfort zone and investigate other areas of the combat sports industry.
In a recent interview with TMZ Sports, he raised the intriguing prospect of him fighting in MMA at the same time as he is monitoring his progress in the striking department through Muay Thai:
“So as of September, I’ll be relocating to Thailand. I’ll stay there for a few months, commuting between the United States and Asia at various times. But I’ll spend the most of my time in Thailand. Am I correct in assuming that I will have access to the very finest Muay Thai training available anywhere in the world? Being in the country that gave birth to Muay Thai, and letting you guys know how far I’ve come.”
The Italian-American has been doing his training for the entirety of his professional BJJ career in the United States. He just relocated to Singapore to join Evolve MMA, one of the most prestigious gyms in the area, in order to continue honing his abilities in “The Gentle Art.”
Musumeci is making a smart decision by doing this since it will allow him to immerse himself in the “art of the eight limbs,” which will be of tremendous assistance to his existing skill set in the event that he decides to make the switch to MMA.