Gabriel Sousa expects Mikey Musumeci to rely on his guard game in rematch: "The same thing will happen"

Submission grappling bouts make for some of the most must-watch fights in combat sports and ONE Championship will give fans another dose of it at ONE 167 on June 7 between Gabriel Sousa and Mikey Musumeci.

The bout marks the flyweight submission grappling world champion's bantamweight debut as he hopes to get his revenge against the Brazilian star.

However, Gabriel Sousa believes that their rematch will flow just like their first matchup and gave a foreboding warning during an interview with Vitor Freitas Comunica:

"I believe that in this rematch, the same thing will happen as in our first fight. He's going to pull guard because you don't see him relying on his wrestling too much. He has a very good guard, he attacks heel hooks and foot locks very well."

The decorated Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) martial artist had Musumeci's number the first time they fought back in 2021 as he locked in a north-south choke to force a tap from 'Darth Rigatoni'.

But with both men having been three years removed from their first encounter, they are expectedly different from their past iterations and might end up being a fight of the night contender.

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Gabriel Sousa gives sneak peek into his game plan

Musumeci has established himself in the minds of combat sports fans as an active living legend despite only being 27 years old, though Sousa is out to prove that he can be beaten.

Gabriel Sousa told ONE Championship about how he plans to attack Musumeci at ONE 167:

"My focus will be on passing to side control or taking the back, and Mikey's focus will be on attacking my legs or taking my back."

ONE 167 will air live from the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand. The entire card will be available for free to Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.