Chaos erupted at ONE 168 as flyweight submission grappling champion Mikey Musumeci was controversially stripped of his title for missing weight; after being asked to drop down three weight classes in just a few days following a last-minute opponent change.
Whilst athletes who miss weight are usually met with criticism from the fanbase over their lack of discipline, the global jiu-jitsu community has rallied behind ‘Darth Rigatoni’ following what they believe to be a ‘failure’ on the part of ONE Championship – and it’s not difficult to see why.
Mikey Musumeci reacts to losing ONE Championship title on the scale
ONE 168 goes down this evening, September 6, live from the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado, with the co-main event originally meant to be Mikey Musumeci facing Kade Ruotolo at 170lbs.
Unfortunately, Ruotolo was forced to withdraw from the bout with an injury earlier in the week, just a fortnight after winning the 2024 Craig Jones Invitational Under 80kg finals in Las Vegas.
Yet this is when the chaos truly started; with the promotion quickly moving to book Musumeci in another title bout in order to keep him on the ONE 168 card, this time against Bebeto Oliveira… At flyweight.
Given how Musumeci was asked to drop some 35lbs on just a few days’ notice, it didn’t come as a surprise when the fan-favorite American failed the hydration tests and subsequently, failed to make weight.
In what’s been labeled as an egregious failure on the part of the promotion, Musumeci has now been stripped of his flyweight submission grappling title.
The 28-year-old has now shared his reaction to the chaos both on and off the scales via Instagram, and it’s safe to say that the grappling icon is heartbroken with how the week has unfolded.
“Probably one of the worst days of my life in jiu jitsu. I wanted so bad to compete in One 168 in Denver, I felt horrible to the fans that were coming to see me and I felt I was letting them down. I tried to make the championship 135 lb weight in about 72 hours, but it was too much on short notice after preparing for the Kade match.
“My body and hydration shut down when I got to 136 earlier today. Today I lost my belt, today I let down the fans and I want to apologize to my opponent Bebeto, someone I respect greatly, not being able to make the weight.”
Musumeci ended his statement by apologizing to his fanbase for the weight miss, despite having little reason to: “I’m so sorry to everyone I gave it my all. But God has everything happen for a reason. I’m so sorry again everyone.”
Fans from around the world rally behind Musumeci over matchup chaos
As previously noted, athletes are typically berated by fans for missing weight, especially when a bout includes a world championship title on the line, but not so here.
In fact, it appears that almost the entirety of the ONE Championship and the wider jiu-jitsu community have come together in support of Musumeci, and to slam the promotion for their handling of the situation.
ONE 168 goes down on Friday, September 6 and will be available to watch via Amazon Prime Video in the United States.