SUMMARY
- Mikey Musumeci is a grappling phenom who performs for ONE Championship.
- Mikey has some valuable advice for parents whose children practice Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
ONE Flyweight Submission Grappling World Champion Mikey Musumeci has participated in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for the majority of his life, and with the accolades he’s amassed, his word holds some weight.
Musumeci will return to action at ONE 167 on Prime Video on Friday, June 7, inside Bangkok, Thailand’s Impact Arena when he locks horns with the last man to beat him in Gabriel Sousa in a non-title bantamweight submission grappling affair.
Long before he grappled with the Brazilian, “Darth Rigatoni” had to find his way to BJJ through other sporting outlets. His mother wasn’t a big fan of him competing in such a physical sport, as are so many other parents.
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Parental guidance is always a crucial element in raising a child, but when it comes to a sport like grappling, Musumeci believes parents should loosen up and allow the kids themselves to decide whether it’s for them or not.
“I think a lot of parents push their kids too much to do certain things, and then you’ll see the kid ends up quitting jiu-jitsu because they hate it. It has to come from inside. The parent has to do a good job in making the kid choose what passion they want and to stick with it. It has to come from the kid,” he said.
“Don’t tell your kid they have to train. What you’re gonna do is you’re gonna go train, and you’re gonna have your kid sometimes go, but you’re gonna make it your cool thing, and then your kid’s gonna want to do it because it’s your cool thing, and he’s gonna want to do what you’re doing.”
The five-time IBJJF World Champion took up the grappling arts at the age of four. Since then, pursuing greatness has been a quest created by him, and him alone. And being given the freedom to find his sport has allowed him to reach the world’s biggest stage.
Mikey Musumeci reveals his mother hated seeing him do submission Grappling
When ONE Flyweight Submission Grappling World Champion Mikey Musumeci stepped on the mats for the first time at the age of 4, his mother thought the grappling art would be a good way to boost his confidence. But she never anticipated his love competition to come alive.
Musumeci developed a thirst to compete and put his skills to the test. And as his matchups began to get more physical in his teenage years, his mother pleaded with him to stop competing. But the foundations had been laid. “Darth Rigatoni” wasn’t going to stop, as his success was only inevitable from there onward.
“My mom didn’t even want me to compete. I was like 13, 12 years old. She’s like, ‘Please, no more competing.’ She hated it, she was horrified of me competing,” Musumeci said.
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“She’s like, ‘Alright, just win one more tournament and then no more competing, please.’ I was gonna be competing at NAGA at this time, and I’m like, ‘Mom, I want another belt.’ I won another belt, so I fought again and then I’d win a belt. And then I’m like, ‘Wait, wait, one more tournament, please!’ And then I ended up just keeping competing.”
Musumeci steps inside the Circle once again on Friday, June 7, to take on Gabriel Sousa in a non-title bantamweight submission grappling contest. The Brazilian was the last man to defeat Musumeci, so there’s no doubt the American will have plenty of motivation heading into Bangkok, Thailand’s Impact Arena next month.