‘I Cannot Train In Silence’ – How BJJ Superstar Mikey Musumeci Is Powered By His Love Of Music
Known for his hyper-analytical, computer-like brain for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, reigning ONE Flyweight Submission Grappling World Champion Mikey “Darth Rigatoni” Musumeci is fueled by tunes on a day-to-day basis.
Now in the final preparations for his openweight submission grappling showdown with Japanese legend Shinya Aoki on October 6 at ONE Fight Night 15: Tawanchai vs. Superbon on Prime Video, Musumeci opened up about the way he hones his craft at Evolve MMA in Singapore.
“Darth Rigatoni” is renowned for his intense, hours-long training sessions. And according to him, music – loud music – is a major key to surviving these demanding workouts.
He spoke to onefc.com ahead of his matchup with Aoki in U.S. primetime:
“I cannot train in silence. That’s the worst thing in the world, when you just hear the mats and people breathing. I can’t do it. I don’t have the attention span.
“You know, I like blasting music like you’re in a club. Super loud, like you’re in a dance club or something. I think that’s the vibe when I train. It’s fun.”
As a five-time IBJJF World Champion, ONE’s flyweight submission grappling king, and widely regarded as one of the planet’s top pound-for-pound submission artists, Musumeci is clearly doing something right in his training.
More specifically, the BJJ phenom says that music allows him to tap into another level of focus, helping him push through pain and fatigue:
“Music brings you into a zone of subconscious, right? Music has feeling to it. Music has rhythm to it. And I feel like music helps you go into another place mentally. I really like training with music. It makes it more fun.”
Musumeci Details His Diverse Taste In Music
What kind of music does Mikey Musumeci listen to during his epic training sessions?
There’s not one easy answer, he says. His taste in music is as broad as his BJJ knowledge, ranging from heavy rock to female pop stars:
“Depends my mood. You know, when I’m very dark, I’m into more like Disturbed, Rage Against the Machine, Five Finger Death Punch, like that vibe. And then other times I’m into religious music, like Christian music. Then other times I’m into like Lady Gaga, Britney Spears music.”
The New Jersey native tends to listen to one genre per fight camp, setting the mood for each blockbuster matchup in ONE Championship.
Ahead of his successful World Title defense against fellow BJJ World Champion Osamah Almarwai, for example, Musumeci took a deep dive into something a little more obscure:
“My fight with Osamah, we were into this German techno music, and we were just blasting the **** out of it and training. It was really fun, everyone just started dancing, so that’s the vibe of training for us.”
But what about outside of the training room when “Darth Rigatoni” is making the walk to the ring or Circle to face another world-class submission grappler?
The music doesn’t stop there. But instead of hyping himself up like he does during training, Musumeci prefers to be in a calm and clear state of mind:
He revealed:
“A lot of times you’ll see me with headphones on when I walk out in ONE Championship, and everyone’s always curious what I’m listening to. I’m usually listening to religious music. When I walk out, it just makes me at peace.”
