"He came up with excuses" - Gabriel Sousa vows to beat an in-form Mikey Musumeci in highly anticipated rematch at ONE 167

As much as Mikey Musumeci wants to get back at Gabriel Sousa for his defeat against him in 2021, the Brazilian grappling savant also has the same eagerness to come out with the victory on June 7 at ONE 167. Sousa and Musumeci will meet in a much-awaited rematch inside the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand, in a bantamweight submission grappling contest.

The 27-year-old star revealed the reason behind his desire to reassert his mastery against the reigning ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion in a recent video published by ONE Championship on Instagram, as he stated:

"So when I beat him [Mikey], for some reason he came up with excuses. I don't think it was necessary. He told me he was not 100%. I want to beat him this time in his best shape. I don't want get nobody at 50%. I want them at 100%."

Sousa defeated 'Darth Rigatoni' in September 2021 during their first meeting by choking him in a North-South position at Who's Number One. Three years after the win, he wants to prove that it was not a fluke.

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Gabriel Sousa is the overwhelming underdog among fans in upcoming match with Mikey Musumeci

Before locking horns and exchanging submission maneuvers once more, ONE Championship asked the fans who they thought would emerge victorious in the upcoming battle between Sousa and Musumeci in a recent poll on its Instagram Story.

It turns out that Sousa is the overwhelming underdog against Musumeci, as he only got 19 percent of the fans' votes. The BJJ black belt wants to introduce himself in grand fashion to the promotion's global fanbase with a win on fight night.

ONE 167 is available live and free to all Prime Video subscribers in North America in U.S. primetime on June 7. The card will emanate from the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.