“I have the beard now. I’m growing a beard. I’m from Dagestan now.”
“This year I’m a new Mikey. I want to do more passing and takedowns. So gotta go full Dagestani to do it. Gotta channel that energy, you know.”
The rebranding comes as Musumeci faces mounting criticism over his earlier performances in the promotion. When asked about the evolution of his matches from slower-paced affairs to more dynamic encounters, he revealed he had been competing through significant health challenges that limited his capabilities.
“Honestly that first match, I had three ulcers. And so I was like really messing me up.”
“My last match where I submitted the match fast, that was the first time I’ve been healthy in like a year. Three ulcers is very hard to get rid of. It took me like a whole year to remove them, and that’s why I feel so much stronger and better now.”
He went further, dismissing his previous approach with surprising candor. When reminded about his signature submission victory using the “Mikey lock,” he responded:
“That was so 2025. This is 2026 now.”
Musumeci even directed pointed comments at his upcoming opponent and the style Montague represents.
“Get rid of these butt scooters. They’re a disgrace to this sport, you know. And Shea’s a butt scooter, so I gotta smash him. Wrestling and passing is where it is.”
The transformation appears influenced by training with high-level athletes from the Dagestani grappling tradition. Musumeci specifically mentioned working with Umar Nurmagomedov, praising the Dagestani’s technical abilities.
“Honestly, out of all the MMA jiu-jitsu people I’ve trained with, he’s probably like he could beat a lot of the jiu-jitsu people I compete with. I was super impressed with him.”
“I love training with him, and I’ll probably go to Dagestan later in the year to train more with those guys and learn more wrestling and that style.”
However, the matchup itself has generated controversy within the grappling community. UFC BJJ passed on booking what many consider a blockbuster encounter between Musumeci and legendary competitor João Miyao, despite both athletes publicly agreeing to the match.
Musumeci acknowledged the importance of entertainment value in modern grappling.
“I put this () pressure on myself to make the matches more exciting.”
“It’s a rule set. The rules make jiu-jitsu more fun. The rule set now, you can’t just play strategy.”
Whether the new “Dagestani Mikey” can deliver on his promise of a wrestling and passing-focused performance against Montague remains to be seen.
