UFC’s inaugural Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu champion, Mikey Musumeci, just scored a victory over a ranked UFC contender. ‘Darth Rigatoni’ defeated Bryce Mitchell via unanimous decision at UFC BJJ 11 in a non-title featherweight headliner on September 24. But right after securing perhaps the biggest victory of his BJJ career, Musumeci already had his eyes on something else: the MMA cage.

At the UFC BJJ 11 post-fight press conference, the 30-year-old grappling great revealed that he is targeting his MMA debut toward the end of this year, specifically in November or December.

“In MMA, right? Before the end of this year, 100%,” Musumeci said. “I got to talk to my manager, Abe, and we’ll work on that. But I was actually supposed to fight in an MMA fight like a day later. I was supposed to finish this, fly red-eye to another place, and then fight MMA.

“So now, I have to wait for the next event that can go through. So probably by November or December, I should be going to MMA.”

Going by Musumeci’s words, he was set for his MMA debut almost immediately after the BJJ bout with Mitchell. However, he did not share many details about what derailed those plans.

Regardless, he is now set to move to MMA full time after capturing the BJJ world. When asked what weight class he was thinking for his MMA debut, Musumeci confirmed that he will be competing strictly in the 125-pound flyweight division.

This is far from the first time the New Jersey native has spoken about changing the trajectory of his career.

After beating Shinya Aoki in 2023 at ONE Championship, the five-time IBJJF black belt World Champion first revealed his desire to compete in the Asian promotion’s MMA division toward the end of 2024. However, he eventually backed out of those plans because of his lack of striking experience.

A year after that statement, ‘Darth Rigatoni’ joined the UFC’s BJJ platform and defeated Rerisson Gabriel at the promotion’s inaugural event on June 25, 2025, to become the bantamweight champion. Since then, Musumeci has defended the belt three times under the UFC’s Jiu-Jitsu banner.

However, his ambition to compete in MMA never went away. In June this year, Musumeci joined Merab Dvalishvili’s coach, John Wood, at Syndicate MMA in Las Vegas and announced the alliance in an Instagram post. Then, in May, he again spoke about a potential debut in the latter half of 2026.

“I might later in the year. I’ve been working on having an MMA matchup later in the year,” Musumeci had said on his YouTube channel in May. “I definitely have to keep learning more wrestling, and I’m learning the basics of boxing right now.”

That makes his latest announcement particularly notable. Musumeci has spent years establishing himself as one of the biggest names in competitive jiu-jitsu, but he now appears ready to leave his comfort zone and test whether those skills can translate to MMA.

“I’ve already won every title I’ve wanted to in jiu-jitsu in my weight class right? So for me to do the same thing over and over, it kind of gets played out, you know,” he told reporters at the recent presser.

It’s commendable that Mikey Musumeci wants to test himself in the cage after dominating the BJJ scene for so long. But he’s far from the first fighter to do so.

Before him, names like Kron Gracie, who comes from the famous Gracie family, made the transition to MMA and eventually competed in the UFC.

Mikey Musumeci could find himself on that list if he follows through with his plans. But to properly make that transition, the 30-year-old is willing to make a major sacrifice.

Mikey Musumeci is ready to vacate his UFC BJJ belt for MMA debut

If there was any doubt about whether ‘Darth Rigatoni’ is serious about his MMA ambitions, Musumeci further claimed that he is ready to relinquish his UFC BJJ bantamweight belt to fully focus on mixed martial arts.

“So, I think it’s time for me to start talking with the UFC about this conversation about vacating,” Musumeci said further in the post-fight presser. “I don’t really have desire anymore.

“It doesn’t seem like it’s giving me the high anymore. So, this tonight gave me that high because I was actually having fun.”

Musumeci has already won major titles across different organizations and defeated numerous high-level opponents. Now, after years of competing at the highest level in jiu-jitsu, he appears to be looking for a new challenge.

Still, even while considering vacating his belt, Musumeci remains open to a couple of jiu-jitsu bouts against names like Arman Tsarukyan and Brian Ortega. However, he ultimately believes MMA is the next step for him.

“Arman, Bryce, Brian Ortega, people like that, where we could entertain the people,” Musumeci added. “I think that this would go further, where we get more views and things than actually staying in this Jiu Jitsu loop with the nerdy Jiu Jitsu people.”

Tsarukyan has already shown interest in facing the 30-year-old in a grappling match later this year. Still, Musumeci’s latest comments suggest that his attention is now firmly shifting toward MMA.

The UFC already has events scheduled for November and December, including Fight Nights and marquee events.

And while his name is now closely associated with the UFC through its BJJ platform, he has no prior professional MMA experience. He could therefore begin on the regional scene and gradually work his way toward the UFC.

For now, though, Mikey Musumeci appears ready to leave behind the BJJ routine that no longer gives him the same thrill and find out what comes next inside the cage.