Grappling ace Mikey Musumeci has been an advocate for a clear sport within the jiu-jitsu world, and now that he’s signed with the UFC, he hopes it’s going to assist transcend that world shifting ahead.
Musumeci competes for the promotion’s inaugural bantamweight title on Wednesday evening at UFC BJJ 1 towards rising star Rerisson Gabriel. Three titles can be on the road on the occasion.
For Musumeci, having a clear sport is without doubt one of the fundamental motivations to signing completely with the UFC as they added one thing new to their fight portfolio, and likewise revealed that the promotion will participate within the UFC’s drug-testing protocols.
“That was one of many causes I even went to UFC,” Musumeci advised MMA Preventing. “I might haven’t went in the event that they weren’t implementing drug testing. For me, being a pure athlete my entire life, I actually need to change our sport and do away with all of the steroids and all these unhealthy issues in our sport proper now. It grew to become acceptable for individuals to do all this stuff, and I need to do away with that now, and I would like it to be an expert sport identical to NFL, NBA.
“Now individuals will nonetheless take steroids and cheat the system, however allow them to spend some huge cash to cheat the system. A minimum of allow them to must spend the cash. So, no less than now we’ll be extra professional {and professional}, and that’s what we’re working in direction of. In 2026, they’re going to start out drug testing, and I’ll be rather a lot stronger in my matches after they begin.”
UFC BJJ 1 is the end result of the promotion’s first season of UFC BJJ: Highway to the Title, a actuality present much like The Final Fighter.
This system launched a brand new UFC BJJ octagon — with a ramp-like construction on the surface to power motion — together with a brand new championship belt that can be awarded to all three new champions.
With the whole lot in play, Musumeci wholeheartedly agrees he made the best option to be part of the UFC’s new undertaking.
“Man, so it’s probably the most significant factor I may most likely do in my life,” Musumeci stated. “We’re beginning this program from scratch. That is UFC BJJ 1. I bought along with Hunter, Claudia and [others from UFC] on the finish of November, December time, and we formulated a plan how we need to change and develop grappling. As a result of the outdated manner of grappling, it was probably not interesting. There’s simply so many issues with it with matches stopping, resets, boring matches, individuals stalling, so it wasn’t actually interesting to anybody.
“So we actually needed to get collectively and determine a manner that we will make this truly thrilling and make it a platform that’s truly skilled and long run the place rivals may compete in and earn a living. And I actually really feel like we did that now. It’s just like the outdated, Royce Gracie days. It actually says ‘1’ on [the event title]. It’s like the start of UFC, so it’s loopy.”
