Mikey Musumeci stayed on top Thursday night at UFC BJJ 5, defending his bantamweight title against Shay Montague. The show also featured a middleweight title fight later in the card, but the spotlight was on Musumeci and his plan to try something new.
Before the match began, Musumeci said he did not want to rush into leg attacks. He wanted to spend more time wrestling and working from the top. To show that idea, he even walked out wearing a Dagestani style chin strap.
The opening round moved at a slow and careful pace. Montague kept turning under and searching for leg entries. Musumeci stayed patient and chose not to jump into those positions. Both men worked for control, but neither found a clear path to a finish. Between rounds, Montague told his corner that something in his leg did not feel right, and he came back out with that problem in mind.
The second round had more action. Musumeci pushed forward and managed to get past the guard. Montague was still dangerous and caught a leg, which forced Musumeci to back away and reset. As the round went on, they ended up in another leg exchange. This time, Musumeci moved first, fell back on the ankle, and the tap came almost immediately.
The match had been quiet early, but it ended in a sudden moment.
After the win, Musumeci spoke about how he felt about his performance.
“[It’s] a little bittersweet,” Musumechi said. “I wanted to do more passing. I think I passed him twice. But I wanted to finish in the pass. I felt like I got that foot lock really fast.”
He also praised Montague for being difficult to control.
“Shay’s guard is incredible, he’s like a human pretzel, so bendy. Eventually I got through. I did play top this match, it was just fun for me working something new and just not finishing the match immediately.”
“This match I wanted to do something new and be out there longer.”
When Mikey hit the Mikey lock 🔒
Will @MusumeciBJJ get another quick finish at #UFCBJJ5?
[ Live and FREE on YouTube | FEB 12 THU | 8pmET ] pic.twitter.com/YyhQwsI1B7
— UFC BJJ (@ufcbjj) February 9, 2026
With the title still his, Musumeci then talked about a possible future match. He brought up Arman Tsarukyan, who had earlier mentioned a grappling match with Tom Hardy. That match did not happen, but Musumeci said he would be ready to step in.
“My friend Tom Hardy, Arman called out for a grappling match. At the time he was a purple belt. He called out a hobbyist purple belt for a grappling match. How about he competes against a jiu jitsu person in a grappling match? I’ll go up to his weight class, and we do a grapple match. That will be fun.”
The rest of the card also had strong finishes. Ronaldo Junior kept his middleweight title with a decision win over Tarik Hopstock. Andy Murasaki defeated Andy Varela with an armbar in the first round. Rebeca Lima won her match with an ankle lock in round two. At the start of the night, Jalen Fonacier submitted Carlos Oliveira with a heel hook in record time for the promotion.
In the end, the result was clear. Musumeci tried a wider game, stayed calm in a tricky match, finished when the chance appeared, and then made it known he is aiming for a bigger name next.
