“Hopefully, I can break him” - IBJJF champ Osamah Almarwai promises intense pace and energy against Cleber Sousa in Qatar

IBJJF no-gi world champion Osamah Almarwai is ready to push the pace when he steps inside the Circle for the second time.

On Friday, March 1, Almarwai will look to break into the win column when he meets Brazilian standout Cleber Sousa in a submission grappling showdown at ONE 166 in Qatar. Both competitors will be gunning for their first win under the ONE Championship banner after coming up short against reigning ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion Mikey Musumeci.

Speaking with the promotion ahead of his return, Osamah Almarwai offered some insight into his game plan and how he hopes to break his opponent with an unrelenting pace. He said:

“And regardless, I want to give the fans a good show,” Almarwai said. I’m going to push the pace for 10 minutes. I’ve been training for way longer than this in classes, so I know I can push the pace for 10 minutes. I’m going to be pushing the pace the whole time, and hopefully, I can break him.”

Cleber Sousa plans to go through Osamah Almarwai en route to rematch with Mikey Musumeci

Osamah Almarwai’s opponent, Cleber Sousa has established himself as a truly elite black belt competitor in the world of BJJ, securing 86 career victories and a slew of world titles, his biggest coming in 2019 when he captured gold at the IBJJF Pan American Championships.

In addition to his many accomplishments, ‘Clandestino’ actually holds a victory over Mikey Musumeci, besting ‘Darth Rigatoni’ in a 2017 match via decision. Though he wasn’t able to duplicate the result in their inaugural ONE flyweight submission grappling world title match in 2022, Sousa believes a big win over Almarwai will put him in line for a rematch with the reigning world champ.

Amazon Prime Video subscribers in North America can catch all the action at ONE 166: Qatar live and for free on Friday, March 1.