ONE Championship star Mikey Musumeci fully supports Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s entry into mixed martial arts.
In an interview with TMZ, Musumeci opened up about training alongside his friend and what he learned about his skill level. To say the least, the ONE flyweight submission grappling champion was left impressed.
“The first time I trained with Mark, honestly, I expected him to be super intelligent but when I saw him train, I saw this animal on the mat. He’s tough as f***. First, he trained with me, then he trained with this other guy and the guy fell on him. He fell really hard and someone was like ‘are you ok?’ and he was like ‘I’m fine.’ He just wanted to keep pushing. So, he goes hard in training, you know what I mean? He’s not like a pretty boy or anything like that at all, he goes hard,” Musumeci explained.
“Darth Rigatoni” also spoke about the Facebook creator’s physical strength and intelligence. The combination of which is why Musumeci believes he could find success if he transitioned into actual competition.
When asked that question, Musumeci was adamant Zuckerberg could pick up a win in a professional bout.
“A hundred percent. Like I said, he’s around my size and I think he’s very strong for my size. He’s above average strength, if not on the higher end of strength for my size. So, he’s going to be super technical because he’s super smart and he can learn so fast. You show him a movement one time and he instantly knows it, you know what I mean? He’s that type of guy,” he said.
“The guy has so much potential and he’s tough, he’s not like a wimpy guy. He’s tough as f***, so I think he could do really well.”
The 27-year-old stated that he will soon return to training alongside the Meta CEO and expressed his excitement about seeing how much he has progressed since the last time they grappled.
Musumeci is expecting a sizable jump in his skill level due to the dedication he puts into training, which includes adding a cage to his backyard.
“We talk frequently, we’re always texting each other and he texted me a picture of this cage in his backyard. You know, growing up in New Jersey, we had trampolines and stuff in our backyard, right? So it has that vibe, but I’m like ‘what the hell it’s a cage, what the f***.’ It shows, because the type of person that Mark is, is that everything he does, he does a hundred percent, right? He doesn’t half ass anything so if he’s into MMA, he’s going to put a cage in his f****** backyard,” recalled “Darth Rigatoni.”
“It’s scary though, this guy is so smart. It’s interesting to see him keep improving and his progress. I’m fascinated by it, it’s like this crazy science experiment.”
Zuckerberg is not the only one teasing an entry into MMA. Musumeci has dropped hints in the past as well, and his inner circle are pushing him to give it a chance.
Although he is committed to the submission grappling division over which he reigns, the flyweight king said he’ll test the waters in Muay Thai while in Thailand to see if he can get his striking up to par before making a decision to take a fight.
“Gilbert wants me to [do MMA] so bad, you know, because Gilbert gave me my black belt. I’m moving to Thailand in September. I’m going to be there for a few months back and forth from the U.S. and Asia, but I’ll be in Thailand mostly. So, I’m going to have access to the best Muay Thai training in the world, right, being in the motherland of Muay Thai,” Musumeci said.
“Let’s see my progress, I did Muay Thai for like seven years as a kid and I love it. I love Muay Thai, I really enjoy learning it, just like jiu jitsu. So, I’ll just study it and become the best I can at it, then if I’m ready and I’m decent, f*** it, lets do it. I’d love to do MMA it’d be so cool.”
Before that can happen, Musumeci will battle Shinya Aoki at ONE Fight Night 15 on Friday, Oct. 6, on Prime Video.