Mikey Musumeci says submission win over Shinya Aoki will prove that his "finishing mechanics" are on point

ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion Mikey Musumeci is looking to have a submission victory over Japanese legend Shinya Aoki this week to further highlight that his finishing mechanics are as good as it gets.

‘Darth Rigatoni’ will take on ‘Tobikan Judan’ in an openweight grappling showdown at ONE Fight Night 15 on Prime Video on October 6 in Bangkok.

The featured contest is part of the eight-fight offering, happening at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium and is available live on US primetime free of charge for existing Prime Video subscribers in North America.

In an interview with ONE Championship, Mikey Musumeci said a submission victory over a bigger opponent like Shinya Aoki is going to be a nod to what he has been doing all this time in the promotion, saying:

“I think that it would show my technical ability in finishing submissions, you know which that's what I've been working so hard for in no-gi. It's a lot different than gi because you have to have, like, perfect finishing mechanics to finish people in no-gi.”

“So it'll say a lot about all my finishing mechanics and that they're on point, you know, that I'm technically on point with my finishing mechanics. Because again, I do not have a strength advantage against Shinya. It's very easy to submit people when you're stronger than them.”

ONE Fight Night 15 will be the fourth outing of Mikey Musumeci for this year alone. His previous three fights were all successful title defenses of the ONE flyweight submission grappling world title he won in September last year.

For his upcoming fight, he is adding pounds as he battles Shinya Aoki, who is traditionally a lightweight.

The 40-year-old veteran, meanwhile, is competing in his first fight this year after having a busy 2022, where he fought three times – two in mixed martial arts and one grappling.